Turner settles claim over recycling job Waste Management to pay 'Halloween killer' to drop job discrimination case By Jessica McBride of the Journal Sentinel staff Last Updated: Sept. 20, 1999 Waste Management Inc. entered into a financial settlement with convicted "Halloween killer" Gerald Turner on Monday in exchange for Turner's withdrawing his claim that the company discriminated against him by refusing him a job, the company announced. Under terms of the settlement, the firm will not employ Turner, who was released from prison in 1992 in the slaying of 9-year-old Lisa Ann French. The Fond du Lac child was murdered while trick-or-treating in 1973. Lynn Morgan, spokeswoman for the company, refused to say how much money Waste Management paid Turner, citing a confidential settlement that bars each side from commenting about the amount. Turner, who lives at a Madison halfway house, wanted a job sorting recyclables for Waste Management in that city. He was not represented by an attorney at the settlement conference, which was held at a state office building in Madison and was closed to the public. Turner did not return a call seeking comment. A news release from Waste Management said company officials believed the settlement would save the firm money in the long run. "While we sincerely believe Waste Management is in full compliance with Wisconsin law, this settlement avoids the substantial legal expense and business disruption of further legal proceedings," the release says. The announcement of the settlement immediately prompted criticism. "What's next?" asked Thomas Snyder, the retired Fond du Lac County sheriff who was special investigator in the 1973 case. "I'm damn upset, in plain English. (Turner) always made sure he knew his rights. He could quote them to you. If we had had truth-in-sentencing then, this wouldn't have happened." Also among the critics: state legislators who are using the case in an attempt to change Wisconsin law, which prohibits employers from refusing to hire convicts unless a substantial connection between the job and the crime can be shown. A hearing on the bill is set for next month. In an interview Monday, Morgan said Waste Management welcomed the attention that legislators have paid to the issue. "I think that this whole situation should be a wake-up call for every business and institution in the state that employs people," she said. "We believe that the law does afford us the right to deny employment to any individual we think might present a danger to our employees. But the fact that matters proceeded this far is an indication there is a problem." Rep. Carol Kelso (R-Green Bay), co-sponsor of the legislation that would change the law, said, "It seems to me that when an employer refuses to hire a gentleman who has raped and murdered a child, they shouldn't have to pay for that." Another co-sponsor, Rep. Scott Walker (R-Wauwatosa), called the settlement "preposterous. Whether it's a dollar or $10,000 or in between or, God forbid, above that, any way you cut it, it's pathetic." But a lawyer who represents employees in labor cases cautioned against forming opinions based on Turner's situation, which he called unusual. "We don't want to throw out the baby with the bathwater and overreact to this case," said Jeff Hynes, co-chairman of the Wisconsin Employment Lawyers Association. "This law was well-intentioned and not inherently evil. In fact, what this law actually does is it protects the rights of thousands of Wisconsin workers to be free of the specter that they could get pink slips because they had some remote conviction years ago." Hynes said he's reviewed numerous employment cases and found none in which the convict prevailed through appeal after being denied a job. Usually, he said, the substantial-connection provision in the law gives companies a legal out. In Turner's case, state Equal Rights Officer Charles Phelan ruled in late July that there was probable cause to believe that Waste Management discriminated against Turner under the Fair Employment Act because the job was not substantially connected to Turner's crime. Phelan's decision set the stage for a hearing before an administrative law judge with the state Department of Workforce Development. The hearing was set for Sept. 20. Morgan said Waste Management initiated the settlement conference Monday. A spokeswoman for the state agency declined to comment. Turner and his parole agent attended the conference, but the agent did not return a call seeking comment. Department of Corrections officials have said in the past that having a job is a key factor as to whether a parolee will integrate successfully into the community. Waste Management had argued that the recycling job was substantially connected to Turner's crime because it would give Turner access to "dangerous materials and weapons, used hypodermic needles, and BB guns," according to state records. Further, the company said the recycling center, 2418 W. Badger Road, gives frequent tours to grade-school pupils, Scouts and other youngsters. Waste Management maintained that it has hired more than 30 people since May who have been convicted of such crimes as battery, burglary and robbery. But the company wanted nothing to do with Turner. Yet Phelan found that if Turner were considered unsuitable for sorting recyclables, "it would then appear that he could be lawfully excluded from every other job dealing with other people and with most, if not all, objects." Appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Sept. 21, 1999. 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