By Tom Kertscher 
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

THIENSVILLE, Wis. — The village paid $3,000 to one of its firefighters after an internal investigation "could not confirm" that he harassed a fellow employee, records show.

As part of a legal settlement with the firefighter, Kurtis Wuehr, the village also erased from his personnel file a three-month suspension he was given for posting pictures of himself in a fire department uniform on the Internet.

In exchange, Wuehr dropped a defamation lawsuit he filed against the woman who made the harassment allegation. The village was not named in the suit.

Wuehr deferred comment to his Cedarburg attorney, John Kitzke, who called him a "very fine young man."

"We feel that he was fully exonerated," Kitzke said, referring to the settlement agreement.

Village President Karl Hertz, citing a confidentiality provision in the settlement agreement, declined to comment.

Wuehr, 25, is from a family with longtime ties to the village. His mother, Denise, is also a member of the Fire Department, whose members are paid-on-call; his father, Erwin, is a former village trustee.

In January 2006, village records show, the Fire Department issued Kurtis Wuehr a "last-chance agreement," telling him he could be fired for posting the photos in several places on the Internet.

More than a year later, in April 2007, the department suspended Wuehr for three months after finding another photo of him in uniform on the MySpace.com Web site, according to the records.

Wuehr told the village he originally posted his photos on the Internet, but that he believes someone used them to create profiles of him on dating sites. He also said he believed someone used his MySpace password to re-post his photo there after he took it down.

Separately, the Fire Department also began an investigation to determine whether Wuehr had sexually harassed Kelly Konkel, an emergency medical technician who joined the Fire Department a month before Wuehr's suspension.

In the summer of 2007, Wuehr returned from his suspension, and in October he was informed by the Fire Department that its investigation "could not confirm a violation" of the village's sexual harassment policy.

The notice also warned Wuehr that any retaliation against someone who makes a good-faith complaint "is not tolerated."

On Nov. 19, Wuehr filed a defamation lawsuit in Ozaukee County Circuit Court against Konkel, alleging she falsely accused him of harassing her in person and on the telephone.

Konkel quit the same day, according to the Fire Department. She has moved away from Thiensville and could not be reached for comment.

Wuehr has been accused of harassing three other females, police and court records show.

In January 2002 and in January 2003, temporary restraining orders were obtained against Wuehr on behalf of former girlfriends. They alleged that Wuehr made threats against them.

In both cases, though, an Ozaukee County circuit judge refused to issue a long-term injunction against Wuehr.

In the third case, also in January 2003, a girl alleged that Wuehr threatened her and two friends.

Wuehr denied making the threat, but was issued a ticket for disorderly conduct. The ticket was later dismissed.

In March, Thiensville notified members of the Fire Department that "the dispute" between the village and Wuehr over his suspension had been resolved.

Copyright 2008 Journal Sentinel Inc.