Two employees filed lawsuits against Penn Forest Township; one was settled and one is still in litigation.

In June, township treasurer Mary Ann Lewellyn filed a suit in the Middle District of the U.S. Court naming Penn Forest Township and township supervisors Alan Katz and Christine Fazio as defendants in an action alleging wrongful termination and retaliation.On Oct. 14, Lewellyn settled her case with the township for $50,000. She submitted her resignation the same day.In the second case, Cindy Henning on Nov. 10 filed a complaint in the Court of Common Pleas in Carbon County naming Penn Forest Township and four of its supervisors as defendants.Henning's complaint alleges that while in the course of her employment as the transfer station secretary, Henning uncovered "potential and/or likely illegal activity involving potential misappropriation of funds related to the transfer station and road maintenance."The complaint alleges that following her discovering and reporting the improprieties, "her work environment became increasingly hostile."The complaint also gives details of an incident that took place on May 9 involving an argument between two supervisors and employee Carol Matthews.Following the incident on May 9, both Henning and Matthews were terminated for insubordination.Inmates file lawsuitSchuylkill County prison inmates in June filed a federal civil rights suit, saying they are not being given enough food and that commissary snacks are overpriced.The suit, which asks for $1.5 million to be divvied up among the inmates for their "pain and suffering," that a new kitchen contractor be hired and that commissary snack prices be reduced, was filed May 20 in U.S. District Court, Scranton.The 14-page, handwritten suit was filed by inmates David N. Murphy, Fred Williams and 44 other men all of whom signed their names and included their prison numbers against Warden Eugene Berdanier, kitchen director Alicia Watson, Gregory Beniston of Trinity Food Services, President Judge William Baldwin, Capt./CO William Flannery. Deputy Warden David Wapinsky, all guards and the county.The suit alleges that portions are too small and that inmates are losing weight, that commissary food items are priced too high, higher than in other prisons, and that inmates rely on the commissary items to keep from starving.Chris Parker