Lion-killing dentist Walter Palmer also preyed on women, sexual harassment claim reveals

Walter Palmer, a Minnesota dentist who sparked an angry firestorm by killing Cecil, a famous and protected lion on a big game hunt in Zimbabwe, settled a sexual harassment claim against him in 2009 for $127,500.

According to public documents posted below, Palmer is accused of sexually harassing a receptionist, who was also his patient, between July of 1999 and January of 2005. The woman "was subjected to verbal comments and physical conduct involving her breasts, buttocks, and genitalia."

The woman informed her supervisor and Palmer that she wanted it to stop, but it didn't, and she alleges she was fired for reporting the harassment, according to the document. Palmer paid out the settlement without admitting to the allegations.

Aside from agreeing to pay $127,500, Palmer had to undergo "at least three hours" of sexual harassment training and provide the woman a signed letter of recommendation for future prospective employers.

READ MORE:

• Jimmy Kimmel destroys lion-slaying dentist: ‘Is it that difficult for you to get an erection?’
• Dentist accused of killing Cecil the lion ‘upset’ as hunter becomes hunted

The document also mentions that Palmer in 2008 pleaded guilty to a federal charge of making false statements in relation to a bear hunting incident. He was fined $2,938.

Palmer illegally killed, Cecil, a well-known, protected and beloved 13-year-old lion living in Zimbabwe's Hwange region, according to the Associated Press. Cecil was killed around July 1. The black-maned lion wore a GPS collar and was being tracked and studied by Oxford researchers.

According to the AP, Cecil was left skinned and decapitated after being lured outside a wildlife park by Palmer and two professional hunters. The cat had been shot with a crossbow, and was found by the hunters 40 hours later, who then killed him with a gun.

"The saddest part of all is that now that Cecil is dead, the next lion in the hierarchy, Jericho will most likely kill all Cecil's cubs," Johnny Rodrigues, chairman of the Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force, told the AP.

Theo Bronchorst and land owner Honest Trymore Bronchorst, the two men who assisted Palmer on the hunt, have been charged with poaching by Zimbabwe authorities. Palmer allegedly paid them $50,000, according to the Washington Post. Zimbabwean officials said Palmer could face charges as well.

Read the court documents below, via Scribd.

Walter Palmer Sexual Harassment Documents

Cecil the lion: