Pucci v. Usair

• Decision Date: 27 September 1996
• Docket Number: No. 96-353-CIV-T-17E.,96-353-CIV-T-17E.
• Citation: 940 F.Supp. 305
• Parties: William W. PUCCI and Valerie J. Pucci, individually and as husband and wife, Plaintiffs, v. USAIR, a Delaware corporation authorized to do business in Florida, Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Middle District of Florida

940 F.Supp. 305

William W. PUCCI and Valerie J. Pucci, individually and as husband and wife, Plaintiffs, v. USAIR, a Delaware corporation authorized to do business in Florida, Defendant.

No. 96-353-CIV-T-17E.

United States District Court, M.D. Florida, Tampa Division.

September 27, 1996.

James Garrity, Law Office of James Garrity, Tampa, FL, for plaintiffs.

Vasilis C. Katsafanas, Jackson, Lewis, Schnitzler & Krupman, Orlando, FL, for defendant.

ORDER ON MOTION TO DISMISS, MOTION FOR A MORE DEFINITE STATEMENT, AND MOTION TO STRIKE

KOVACHEVICH, Chief Judge.

This cause is before the Court on the following motions and responses:

Dkt. 8, 9 Defendant's Motions to Dismiss Counts I, II, III, IV and V of the Complaint, alternatively for a more definite statement with regard to Count V of the Complaint, for a more definite statement with regard to Count VI of the Complaint, for a more definite statement with regard to the entire Complaint, and to strike claims for lost wages, back pay, lost benefits, and loss of future employment as to Counts I, II, III, IV, V, and VI of Plaintiffs' Complaint, and Memorandum.

Dkt. 10 Plaintiffs' Response Memorandum

This suit was originally filed in state court, the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit Court of Hillsborough County. The state court complaint alleged that Mrs. Pucci is a former employee of USAIR, that USAIR created an extraordinarily hostile, sexually-poisoned work atmosphere for Mrs. Pucci, and that USAIR purposely exposed Mrs. Pucci to vile acts of depravity, rather than take simple and cost-effective measures to stop the harassment. The Complaint contains the following causes of action: 1) intentional infliction of emotional distress; 2) battery; 3) assault; 4) loss of consortium; 5) tortious invasion of privacy; and 6) negligence.

On February 20, 1996, USAIR filed a notice of removal of the case to federal court. The notice asserted that the Court had original jurisdiction based on diversity of citizenship pursuant to 28 U.S.C. Section 1332 and 28 U.S.C. Section 1441.

On or about December 1, 1988, USAIR hired Mrs. Pucci. She was first hired to work at USAIR's Baltimore, Maryland facility as the District Sales Secretary. Later, Mrs. Pucci requested and received a transfer to the Orlando, Florida Maintenance Department as an Intermediate Clerk. The Orlando Maintenance Department was accessible to those with a special security badge only.

Mrs. Pucci was the only female working on her shift at the Orlando Maintenance Department. Upon Mrs. Pucci's initial meeting with Supervisor Charles M. Adams, he warned her that she would be exposed to profane language as USAIR's employees did not know how to act around female coworkers. Due to her family finances, Mrs. Pucci felt she had no choice but to continue her employment.

Mrs. Pucci's initial work area was outside Supervisor Adams' office, among the general male maintenance employee traffic. Mrs. Pucci was subjected to foul language, displays of male employees belching and passing gas in front of her desk, and cutout pictures from a pornographic magazine being placed on her desk. Mrs. Pucci showed the photographs to Supervisor Adams, who seized and destroyed them.

Later, Mrs. Pucci found more pornographic pictures on her desk. She showed the photograph to Supervisor Adams, who again seized and destroyed them. Supervisor Adams apologized to Mrs. Pucci and explained to her that USAIR employees did not know how to act around female employees.

On a separate occasion, Mrs. Pucci found more pornographic pictures placed throughout her desk. Mrs. Pucci showed the pictures to Supervisor Adams. Despite his constant request, Mrs. Pucci would not give Supervisor Adams the pictures for fear that he would destroy them. Mrs. Pucci begged Supervisor Adams to take action against those responsible for the acts. A few days later, Mr. Narzakewich, a USAIR Supervisor, held a meeting with the maintenance personnel about sexual harassment, and stated USAIR's intolerance to such behavior.

Mrs. Pucci continued to find more pornographic photographs on her desk. She contacted Mr. Narzakewich's secretary to discuss her findings, and was assured that Mr. Narzakewich would be informed. Mrs. Pucci changed her working hours in an unsuccessful effort to prevent employees from tampering with her desk, and placing pornographic photographs into the desk. Mrs. Pucci contacted Mr. Narzakewich's supervisor, Mr. Tom McMullen, and informed him of the sexual harassment she was experiencing.

Ten months after Mrs. Pucci began working in the Orlando Maintenance Department, her desk was moved into the secured office of USAIR Maintenance Foreman, Rodney Whitfield. This office was kept locked when not in use, and a key was given to Mrs. Pucci. Mrs. Pucci felt her work environment had resembled a cage, and not an office.

Mrs. Pucci was exposed to various forms of harassment. Having a known fear of bugs, Mrs. Pucci arrived to work one day to find two live grasshoppers in her desk. The incident upset and frightened her. Mrs. Pucci found a "Do Not Disturb" sign from a hotel hanging on her office door. Inside her office, she found, "B.J. Goodard. Sick — Due to lack of blow jobs from Valerie" on the attendance board. Mrs. Pucci contacted headquarters, and requested a transfer, but was told nothing was available.

USAIR security contacted Mrs. Pucci and assured her that surveillance cameras would be placed in her office in an effort to discover the perpetrator(s). However, USAIR never installed such cameras or other surveillance methods.

Other incidents which occurred include: 1) Mrs. Pucci finding copies of a homemade cut and paste card stating, "Val's Weight Soars to 200 Lbs! Big Top," posted through the Maintenance Department and placed on Mrs. Pucci's desk, inside her locked office; and 2) Mrs. Pucci overhearing one employee in her office stating to another employee, "Well, Charlie sent us in here to see Valerie. What are we suppose to do? Stick her then lick her?" Mrs. Pucci reported the overheard conversation to Supervisor Adams who seemed to side with the other employees.

Later, Mrs. Pucci found two cartoons depicting lewd and offensive jokes placed in her drawer, as well as more pornographic photographs. Mrs. Pucci met with Base Manager, Thomas E. Powell, to request a transfer. Mr. Powell suggested that Mrs. Pucci was to blame for the behavior of senior USAIR employees and maintenance workers. Mr. Powell then repeated Supervisor Adam's initial warning to Mrs. Pucci that she would be subject to hearing "industrial language" due to the fact that she was working with a group of men. Mrs. Pucci asked Supervisor Adams to issue her a standard maintenance uniform so she would not appear different from the other employees. Supervisor Adams denied her request.

Until her transfer to Kansas City, Missouri, Mrs. Pucci continued to find pornographic materials inside her desk. One day she received by mail a large red Valentine card reading, "On Valentine's Day, remember — candy is dandy ... but sex won't rot your teeth! So what do you say!"

The harassment and abuse caused Mrs. Pucci to suffer a high level of stress and anxiety, withdrawal, headaches, depression, loss of sleep, weight, appetite, and loss of affection toward her husband. Mrs. Pucci felt isolated and distraught. Mrs. Pucci claims that this ultimately caused harm to her marriage with Mr. Pucci.

Mrs. Pucci sought medical treatment and counseling. Mr. Hagan, at USAIR's Employee Assistance Program, arranged for Mrs. Pucci to obtain psychiatric counseling. Mrs. Pucci was diagnosed with anxiety and fatigue resulting from work-related sexual harassment. Dr. Linda Harper, Mrs. Pucci's physician, prescribed the drug Adivan for her anxiety, and the drug Zoloft for her depression.

Mrs. Pucci was admitted as an outpatient at Charter Hospital Orlando South to obtain treatment for depression, marital discord and inability to cope with job stress. Mrs. Pucci's treatment at Charter took place daily from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. for two consecutive weeks.

Due to all of the occurrences, Mrs. Pucci feared for her safety. That fear caused great anxiety arriving to and departing from work. She feared that the harasser(s) would eventually attack her. Due to her fear that she was being watched or stalked, Mrs. Pucci fell down a stairwell which led to her office, landing on her leg and straining her left knee. Her knee required medical attention, and caused her to miss two days of work.

Mrs. Pucci received her requested transfer to Kansas City, Missouri. Although the transfer caused financial hardship, Mrs. Pucci asked for the transfer in an effort to remove herself from the situation in Orlando. Within eleven months, Mrs. Pucci was transferred to Tampa due to the Kansas City, Missouri Operation being closed. Mr. and Mrs. Pucci claim that the transfers significantly disrupted their marriage and the lives of their three young children. Before all of the harassment in the Orlando facility began, Mrs. Pucci received positive employment reviews and recommendations.

Plaintiffs seek to recover on claims of intentional infliction of emotional distress, battery, assault, loss of consortium, tortious invasion of privacy, and negligence based on the acts of harassment that took place and USAIR's lack of efforts to protect Mrs. Pucci from those acts. Plaintiffs' pray for relief of the six claims include compensatory damages, specifically lost wages; lost of future income; costs of doctors, hospitals, medicine, therapy; compensation for pain and suffering; future loss of income and enjoyment of life; compensation for back pay and lost benefits; and their costs.

MOTION TO DISMISS

A complaint should not be dismissed for failure to state a claim unless it appears beyond doubt that the plaintiff can prove no set of facts that would entitle him to relief. Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41,...