[StBernard] Sharon Peralta fired from St. Bernard Parish job

[Westley Annis]

Sharon Peralta fired from St. Bernard Parish job
PRESIDENT'S WIFE NEVER RETURNED TO WORK

BY RICHARD THOMPSON
RTHOMPSON at THEADVOCATE.COM
April 10, 2014

Sharon Schaefer Peralta, who has been involved in a very public divorce with
St. Bernard Parish President David Peralta after accusing him of raping her
in the fall, was fired from her job as a parish paralegal earlier this month
after not showing up for work following a medical leave that began in
January, public records show.

Sharon Peralta was told she would lose her job in an April 2 letter from her
supervisor, Parish Attorney William McGoey, and Human Resources Director
Gretchen Smith.

"You did not appear for work this morning. Please be advised that your
employment with St. Bernard Parish Government has been terminated," the
letter said.

Documents submitted to the Louisiana Workforce Commission by McGoey's office
on April 4 noted that Sharon Peralta's medical leave was slated to end April
1. She hadn't shown up for her $40,000-a-year job since Dec. 4, records
show.

"She just didn't return to work," Smith said in an interview with The New
Orleans Advocate, which obtained the documents under the Freedom of
Information Act.

Sharon Peralta accused her husband in late October of handcuffing, beating
and raping her in their Meraux home. State Police investigated, and the
state Attorney General's Office has said that it is reviewing the case.

David Peralta filed for divorce in December. He has not been charged in
connection with the October incident.

In an interview last month, Peralta said he did not rape his wife, instead
insisting that the couple occasionally engaged in "bondage" and that he was
simply fulfilling his wife's "rape fantasy" that morning.

Sharon Peralta has denied asking her husband to "rape" her as part of a
sexual game.

In a letter last month, Smith told Sharon Peralta that her primary care
physician needed to complete paperwork for her medical leave, which allowed
up to 12 weeks off.

Sharon Peralta requested the medical leave in a Jan. 1 email to Smith,
saying she was unable to return to work. She cited "an incident that
occurred on Oct. 27, 2013," and contended that the job had become a "hostile
work environment."

Attempts to reach Sharon Peralta for comment were unsuccessful. Her New
Orleans lawyer, Vernon Thomas, did not return a call for comment.

Sharon Peralta, in a complaint filed last year with the federal Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission, alleged that David Peralta had harassed
her at work and used his position as a parish leader to pressure her for
sexual favors.

In a brief phone interview this week, David Peralta insisted that he did not
speak with McGoey about Sharon Peralta's firing but otherwise declined
comment. McGoey declined comment, instead referring questions to Smith.

In an interview Wednesday, Smith said the parish had tried reaching out to
Sharon Peralta about her job status "on numerous occasions," including by
email, regular mail and phone calls, but never heard back.

She said Sharon Peralta never filed the necessary paperwork for the medical
leave, but that parish officials expected it to be turned in once she
returned to work.

"We really have given her the benefit of the doubt," Smith said.

In her eight months running the department, Smith said, employees on medical
leave typically have kept in close contact, but that wasn't the case with
Sharon Peralta.

"This is really isolated. I've never experienced that before," she said.

The Peraltas dated for six years before they were married in March 2012.