St. Paul Police Chief Axel Henry has filed a lawsuit against Mayor Kaohly Her, accusing her of sexual harassment and a campaign of retaliation after he reported the alleged misconduct. The 73-page lawsuit, filed in Ramsey County District Court, claims that during a budget meeting for the St. Paul Police Department, Her grabbed Henry’s upper thigh beneath a conference table on two separate occasions. Henry also alleges that Her made sexual comments about his penis size and referred to herself as a "MILF," an acronym that stands for "Mother I'd Like to F---." The lawsuit further states that Her shared personal details about her troubled marriage with Henry and warned that they "needed to be friends" or "this is not going to work." The lawsuit includes previously reported allegations that the mayor created a hostile workplace for her staff. One example cited is when she sent a meme referencing "good weinering," a term often misspelled as "weinering" and used in internet slang to refer to sexual intercourse. Henry is seeking a jury trial to determine damages for emotional distress, humiliation, harm to his reputation, and lost wages and benefits. In response, Her’s chief spokesperson, Matt Wagenius, denied the allegations, stating that an independent investigation found no evidence of sexual harassment or retaliation against any city employee. The statement noted that the mayor issued two apologies and acknowledged that some of her "attempts at humor" were poorly received. However, the investigation concluded that Her "engaged in offensive and inappropriate behavior" with her staff. Henry also claims that after he filed the harassment complaint, the mayor hired a private public relations firm to discredit him. He alleges that city officials violated the Minnesota Whistleblower Act by taking retaliatory actions against him. The lawsuit includes details of a December meeting between Henry, Her, and Todd Hurley, president of the St. Paul Port Authority, where Her allegedly said she would claim Hurley "grabbed her ass" if she didn’t get her way. Henry initially thought it was a joke but later believed she was serious. The lawsuit also states that Her worked out at the police department's gym and allegedly made "grunting and moaning noises" that sounded like she was having an orgasm. Additionally, she allegedly altered photos of Henry and other officers and displayed the "sexualized" images in a gold frame in the chief’s office. Just before Henry filed the lawsuit, Her’s office requested that the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office take over the mayor’s security from the St. Paul Police Department, citing concerns about "political violence" against elected officials. Neither department cited Her’s relationship with Henry as a reason for the change. Kaohly Her, 53, was born in Laos and spent part of her childhood in a refugee camp. She arrived in the U.S. at age 3 and grew up in Illinois and Wisconsin, according to her campaign biography.