Riley v. S.C. Dep't of Corrs.
| Decision Date | 27 July 2021 |
| Docket Number | Civil Action 4:19-cv-1664-JD-TER |
| Parties | JULIA RILEY, Plaintiff, v. SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS, and WILLIE L. EAGLETON, in his individual and official capacity, Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of South Carolina |
REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION
This action arises out of Plaintiff's employment with Defendant South Carolina Department of Corrections (SCDC). Plaintiff alleges causes of action for hostile work environment and retaliation in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), 42 U.S.C. § 2000(e) et seq. and pregnancy discrimination and retaliation in violation of Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 (PDA) 42 U.S.C. § 2000e(k). She also asserts state law claims of invasion of privacy and gross negligence. Presently before the Court is Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment (ECF No. 29). All pretrial proceedings in this case were referred to the undersigned pursuant to the provisions of 28 U.S.C 636(b)(1)(A) and (B) and Local Rule 73.02 (B)(2)(g), DSC. This report and recommendation is entered for review by the district judge.
SCDC hired Plaintiff as a corrections officer in June of 2010. Pl. Dep. 13-14, 86-87 (Ex. 36 to Def. Motion); SCDC Notice of Disclaimer (Ex. 35 to Def. Motion). At all times relevant to this action, Plaintiff worked at Evans Correctional Institution (ECI).
On Saturday, January 14, 2017, Plaintiff was physically assaulted by her immediate supervisor, Sgt. Ivan Rivers. Pl. Dep. 27-28, 43-44; Charge of Discrimination No. 436-2017-01174[1](Ex. 4 to Def. Motion); Sexual Harassment/Hostile Work Environment Compl. (Ex. 10 to Def. Motion); Incident Reports (Ex. B to Pl. Compl.). Plaintiff noticed on that date that Sgt. Rivers arrived to work visibly intoxicated with red eyes and smelling of alcohol. While Plaintiff was sitting at her desk logging in her record book, Sgt. Rivers came behind her, wrapped his left arm around her neck, pulled her back towards him, and began to suck, kiss, and lick on the right side of her neck. Plaintiff immediately pushed him off of her and said This sexual assault occurred in front of a wing full of inmates who watched as it happened. Shortly after, as Plaintiff was standing against a wall monitoring the inmates as they exited the wing for chow, Plaintiff stretched her arms in the air and Sgt. Rivers stood in front of her, grabbed her hands and interlaced his fingers with hers. He pushed her against the wall and leaned into her face to try to tongue kiss her. Plaintiff immediately snatched her head and arms away from him and said Sgt. Rivers then started groping Plaintiff's breasts and buttocks. Again, many inmates observed this encounter. After clearing the inmates out of the wing for chow, Plaintiff returned to her office and cried until she could compose herself. As the inmates returned to the wing, Plaintiff was in the salley port monitoring the inmates' movements. Once she left the salley port and returned to her wing, Sgt. Rivers touched her arm and said “make sure you lock all your inmates down at count time because I'm coming over there with you.” When Plaintiff asked why, Sgt. Rivers responded that he intended to engage in specific, sexual acts with her at that time. At count time, Plaintiff locked down the inmates on her wing but intentionally allowed two inmates to remain out of their cells so she would not be left alone with Sgt. Rivers, who remained on her wing until the count cleared. Incident Reports; Charge of Discrimination No. 436-2017-01174.
Plaintiff reported the sexual assault to Sgt. Parker immediately after it occurred, and Sgt. Parker instructed her to file a Form 16-111 sexual harassment complaint form and an incident report. Sergeant Parker informed Lt. Wheeler of the assault. Parker Incident Report[2] (Ex. C to Pl. Compl.); Charge of Discrimination No. 436-2017-01174. Plaintiff attempted to report the sexual assault to Assistant Warden Sellers on Tuesday, January 17, 2017, but had to leave a message. After waiting two hours for a return call, Plaintiff called Major West and verbally reported what happened with Sgt. Rivers. Incident Report. Plaintiff also completed an Incident Report on Tuesday, January 17, 2017, documenting what happened with Sgt. Rivers. Incident Reports.
Plaintiff returned to work on Wednesday, January 18, 2017, but did not attend briefing due to the possibility of seeing Sgt. Rivers. She reported to Warden Eagleton's office to turn in her incident report and complete a Form 16-111, a sexual harassment complaint form. However, Warden Eagleton did not provide her with the Form 16-111. While Plaintiff was in Warden Eagleton's office, he photocopied her incident report and passed it around to several other people, which was upsetting and embarrassing to Plaintiff. Plaintiff left Warden Eagleton's office and visited Francis Garvin in the personnel office, who attempted to comfort Plaintiff and contacted EAP to set up counseling appointments. Plaintiff asked Colnita Hooks with EAP to contact Warden Eagleton to ask for a Form 16-111 for Plaintiff to complete. Warden Eagleton told Hooks that he would take care of all the paperwork. However, Warden Eagleton never provided Plaintiff with the form. Plaintiff asked if she could be excused from work for the rest of the day due to being mentally and emotionally exhausted, which was granted. Incident Reports. Plaintiff ultimately spoke with Sharese Johnson, SCDC employee relations secretary, who provided Plaintiff with the Form 16-111, and Plaintiff completed it on January 19, 2017. Pl. Dep. 21, 23, 43-44; Charge of Discrimination No. 436-2017-01174; Sexual Harassment/Hostile Work Environment Compl. Plaintiff learned from Johnson that Warden Eagleton[3] had not reported the sexual assault to SCDC Headquarters in Columbia. Also on January 19, 2017, Plaintiff met with SLED investigator Lighthill and provided him with a signed, three page statement. Charge of Discrimination No. 436-2017-01174.
Plaintiff contacted Sgt. Hale with the Marlboro County Sheriff's Office and attempted to make a criminal report on Sgt. Rivers, but Sheriff Lemon would not allow Sgt. Hale to process the Report. He informed Sgt. Hale to let ECI handle the issue internally. Pl. Dep. 38-40; Charge of Discrimination No. 436-2017-01174.
On January 25, 2017, Plaintiff's physician completed a Family Medical Leave Request form, stating that Plaintiff was diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and depression with an undetermined duration. Plaintiff's physician indicated that Plaintiff was unable to perform work of any kind at that time. She would be attending weekly counseling sessions and was prescribed anti-depressant and anti-anxiety medication. FMLA Request Form (Ex. E to Pl. Compl.); Pl. Dep. 30, 58, 83. Plaintiff received a letter on February 10, 2017, indicating that her leave request had been approved beginning January 14, 2017, and would be exhausted on April 8, 2017. Letter Dated Feb. 10, 2017 (Ex. F to Pl. Compl.).
On February 1, 2017, Sgt. Rivers was physically assaulted by three inmates while escorting them to a dormitory. He had to be transported to a local hospital for medical treatment. As a result of the assault, Sgt. Rivers was placed on Assault Leave effective February 2, 2017. When the Assault Leave expired on August 2, 2017, Sgt. Rivers remained out of work on personal leave. SCDC EEOC Position Statement (Ex. E to Pl. Resp.). Sgt. Rivers' employment was terminated in January of 2018 for his failure to return to work following the expiration of his leave. SCDC Response to SCHAC (Ex. F to Pl. Resp.).
Pl. Letter dated Apr. 12, 2017 (Ex. G to Pl. Compl.). However, Plaintiff had to go right back out of work on medical leave because she had to have surgery unrelated to the January 14, 2017, sexual assault. Pl. Dep. 34.
On April 17, 2017, Plaintiff and her father met with Agent Lighthill at the police department. Agent Lighthill advised them that Sgt. Rivers refused to take a lie detector test and gave Plaintiff the option of either participating in an administrative grievance process or going to the police. In May of 2017, Plaintiff authorized Agent Lighthill to proceed with an administrative grievance. Charge of Discrimination No. 436-2017-01174.
Plaintiff was cleared to return to work on full duty with no restrictions on June 26, 2017. SCDC EEOC Position Statement; Pl. Dep. 34. After the sexual assault by Sgt. Rivers in January of 2017, Plaintiff never had any further, one-on-one contact with him. Pl. Dep. 31, 33, 58-59. Also, following the sexual assault, she was never subjected to any another incident of assault. Pl. Dep. 33, 99.
Plaintiff submitted her first EEOC Charge of Discrimination on September 8, 2017. Charge of Discrimination No. 436-2017-01174. The South Carolina Human Affairs Commission (SCHAC) issued a "no cause" finding as to Plaintiff's 2017 charge on September 21, 2018. Pl. Dep. 41-44; Sept. 2018 Dismissal and Notice of Right to Sue (Ex. 9 to Pl. Motion).
On November 17, 2017, Plaintiff received a letter from Annette Horlback, Human Resources Manager,...
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