The check continued until July 10. In 2007 Janet Merlo filed a claim of harassment and misconduct against the RCMP stating that their continual abuse over a decade of service had led to depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. In 2015, hearings were held to determine if her case should be elevated to a class action, as nearly 400 other women officers had asked to join it. In 2007, Sherry Lee Benson-Podolchuk wrote and published "Women Not Wanted", which detailed her experiences with frequent harassment during her 20-year career as the sole female officer in the Prairie region at the time. Benson-Podolchuk sued the RCMP, eventually settling out of court in 2009. In November 2011, Corporal Catherine Galliford, a former spokeswoman for the British Columbia Division, came forward with a claim that she had been the victim of sexual harassment by senior officers as far back as 1991, when she graduated from the RCMP Academy. In October 2016, RCMP commissioner Bob Paulson apologized for what he referred to as "shameful conduct" by the organization. An internal investigation determined that up to 20,000 female officers and civilian employees since 1974, may have been the victim of harassment, discrimination, and/or sexual abuse. Additionally, the organization has set aside a $100 million compensation fund for victims. They did not however address the matter of SSgt Caroline O’Farrell, who brought a separate suit due to her treatment while part of the iconic Musical Ride in the late 1980s. On July 8, 2019 the National Post announced that a $100 million settlement was reached in a class-action lawsuit against the RCMP for sexual harassment. The Federal Government of Canada and the RCMP have entered into a Settlement Agreement in the Tiller et al., vs Her Majesty the Queen (Federal Court File Number T-1673-17) to compensate qualified claimants who have been subjected to the gender or sexual orientation based discrimination and/or harassment. The previous similar 2017 Merlo and Davidson Class Action Settlement only compensated female members and a limited number of public servants. Compensation for proven claims over the 45-year period would range from $10,000 to $222,000 each. The 2016 settlement for $100 million covered female officers who had been sexually harassed in the RCMP since September 1974. A second settlement in 2019 for $100 million was for women in non-policing roles at the RCMP. According to the CBC in 2019, around 2,500 women were expected to claim claims under both of the settlements. The payouts are only allowed for living officers, with payments denied to the families of Mounties who had committed suicide since coming forward about the harassment.