The City of Tampa is in the midst of a discrimination and retaliation complaint from former Assistant Police Chief Ruth Cate, who was fired last March after nearly three decades of service. How Cate’s ordeal ends is unknown, but about a month prior, the city paid $350,000 to settle a lawsuit by another former employee who alleged discrimination, retaliation and nepotism by one of the highest-paid employees in city hall.
Scarlett Lopez was a top-rated employee at the City of Tampa until 2021, when a doctor directed her to take medical leave and work from home due to a painful back problem and later pregnancy complications. At the time, she was an assistant to Jean Duncan, administrator of the troubled mobility department.
According to the City of Tampa FY2025 Schedule of Positions and Salaries, Duncan’s salary was $256,246.99—the highest in the city.
The mobility department is in charge of infrastructure like roads and stormwater management. It made headlines in 2023 when several women in high-ranking positions left the department, alleging discrimination.
A lawsuit Lopez filed later said that Duncan—who previously called Lopez “the face of the city” due to her excellent performance—became frustrated with Lopez in late-2021 for being out of the office. Duncan told other employees she thought Lopez was faking her medical issues and doctor’s notes, according to depositions. Duncan then asked that Lopez be moved to a temporary role so Duncan could hire a new assistant. Under city rules, the lawsuit says, this move would be considered a demotion.
Lopez was told she’d be able to apply for a permanent position soon, and she accepted the demotion. Fearing retaliation, Lopez came back to the office just four days after she miscarried in the fifth month of her pregnancy. She got a bad performance review anyway for her “excessive use of sick leave.” Lopez received the performance review on April 19, 2022, and filed a discrimination complaint with the city that same day.
Lopez’ complaint was never investigated, the lawsuit said.
Danni Jorgenson was Lopez’ supervisor in her new role. In her deposition, Jorgenson said that Duncan got even more frustrated after the complaint, telling Jorgenson, “Who does she think she is? … She’s an at-will employee. I can do what I want.”
When Lopez applied for the permanent position that opened up, Jorgenson testified that Duncan told her not to hire Lopez. “Scarlett has got to go,” Jorgenson remembered Duncan saying. “We’re not keeping Scarlett.”
Sometimes, according to Jorgenson’s deposition, the city will pick someone for a job and only list the application internally for three days. This prevents a flood of applicants for a job when the department already knows who they’ll hire. Instead, Duncan wanted the job advertised externally, and the posting was left up longer than normal.
“Over 200 applicants and over 124 qualified candidates, a panel of three interviewers, and various interviews were conducted to ensure someone else was the ‘best candidate,’” the lawsuit reads.
Lopez did not receive the job. She was terminated when her temporary position ended in August, 2022. Lopez filed a lawsuit against the city in November, 2023, alleging that she was discriminated against for leave that is protected by law, and that she was retaliated against for her discrimination complaint.
She’s an at-will employee. I can do what I want
Jean Duncan, according to deposition from Danni Jorgenson
Lawsuit against the City of Tampa alludes to preferential treatment
The lawsuit repeatedly compares Lopez’s treatment with that of Duncan’s daughter-in-law, Caitlin Dorzback. Dorzback worked in the mobility department under Duncan.
Dorzback was Duncan’s hairdresser before applying to her first position with the city as a utility technician. She had no experience with the city. This is the same position Lopez later applied for and didn’t get, even though she had worked at the City of Tampa for years.
Duncan said in her deposition that Dorzback and her son weren’t dating before Dorzback started her job with the city. Duncan also said she told human resources as soon as her son and Dorzback began dating.
When an employee takes a leave of absence, their performance review is supposed to be delayed. This didn’t happen for Lopez, the suit said. When Dorzback was pregnant with Duncan’s grandchild, her leave was approved “immediately” and her performance review was delayed by almost two months.
On her performance review, Dorzback was given a 4 out of 5 in the “use of leave” category. Lopez was given a 2 out of 5 in the same category, even though all but four hours of the time off she had taken were “protected leave,” according to the suit.
The lawsuit said that Lopez’s temporary job was a demotion. Lopez didn’t get the pay increase required by city policy, according to the suit. “Comparably, Duncan’s daughter-in-law, Dorzback, was recently placed in a temporary position which was to prepare for a higher classification job and received a salary increase,” the suit reads.
Bertha Mitchell was Dorzback’s supervisor when Dorzback first started with the city, and later was supervisor of a higher-paying role Dorzback applied for. Mitchell testified that Duncan spoke highly of Dorzback when Dorzback was being considered for the role.
Duncan has not responded to a request for comment on the lawsuit’s references to her daughter-in-law.
The City of Tampa’s human resources department didn’t investigate
Employee Relations Manager Rebecca Carr said in her deposition that she was not required to investigate Lopez’ complaint because she was an “unclassified” employee not protected from arbitrary firing. Carr also investigated Assistant Police Chief Ruth Cate’s complaint against the city.
Investigations into internal complaints are typically done by the city’s human resources department, which is directed by Kelly Austin, who answers to Chief of Staff John Bennett.
Bennett worked closely with Mayor Jane Castor when they were both in the police department, and she appointed him as her chief of staff shortly after taking office. In his deposition, Bennett said he’s generally responsible for any department that has to do with internal services to the city.
In his deposition, Bennett also said that all city administrators gathered weekly to talk city business in a “round table” discussion, and that terminations are discussed in these meetings “to make sure there is equitable decision-making across the city.”
Bennett testified that Lopez’ termination was never discussed at this weekly round table meeting. No notes from this meeting were turned over to Lopez’ attorney, and Bennett testified that no notes were taken in the first place.
Like in Lopez’ case, there’s no mention of a round table meeting in Carr’s investigation into former Assistant Chief Cate’s termination. It’s unclear if Cate’s termination was discussed at a round table, or how a round table discussion impacts termination decisions.
Taxpayers don’t know how much attorney fees for the settlement cost the City of Tampa
Over a month ago, Creative Loafing Tampa Bay asked the city to share records that would show how much was spent on attorney fees during the lawsuit to reflect the full cost to taxpayers. The city hasn’t fulfilled that request yet. We only know that $350,000 was spent on the settlement itself.
The settlement means Lopez’ case won’t go to trial, so the city can’t be found guilty of any wrongdoing in her case. The lawsuit mentions several “me too” witnesses who also had bad experiences with the mobility department, but none of these witnesses are currently engaged in any known litigation against the city.
The settlement was approved at the Feb. 19, 2026 Tampa City Council meeting. The terms of the settlement are unknown, and Lopez’ lawyer only told CL that both parties had reached an agreement.
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This article appears in Apr. 30 – May 06, 2026.