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Meteorologist Sven Sundgaard sues his former bosses at KARE-11

He says he was fired because of his sexual orientation and personal beliefs.

By Neal Justin Star Tribune APRIL 16, 2021 — 6:30PM

Meteorologist Sven Sundgaard is suing KARE 11 and its parent company, TEGNA, saying he was fired last year because of his sexual orientation and religious beliefs.

In the lawsuit filed Thursday, Sundgaard's attorneys, Joni Thome and Frances Baillon, claim that the station's human resources department routinely ignored the weatherman's reports of discrimination and harassment.

The lawyers allege that a former news director made their client feel "very uncomfortable" shortly after he converted to Judaism in 2010 when she asked him if he still believed that Jesus was the Messiah.

The suit also claims that a former news director made a hostile comment toward him in 2007 when the meteorologist appeared on the cover of Lavender magazine, a Twin Cities publication that covers the LGBTQ community.

KARE and TEGNA are denying the allegations.

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