Cornish v. District of Columbia

67 F. Supp. 3d 345, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 129198, 2014 WL 4583637
CourtDistrict Court, District of Columbia
DecidedSeptember 16, 2014
DocketCivil Action No. 2013-1140
StatusPublished
Cited by30 cases

This text of 67 F. Supp. 3d 345 (Cornish v. District of Columbia) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, District of Columbia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cornish v. District of Columbia, 67 F. Supp. 3d 345, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 129198, 2014 WL 4583637 (D.D.C. 2014).

Opinion

Re Document No.: 11

MEMORANDUM OPINION

RUDOLPH CONTRERAS, United States District Judge

Granting in Part and Denying In Part Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss and for Summary Judgment

I. INTRODUCTION

Plaintiff Leslie M. Cornish (“Cornish”), an employee at the Superior Court of the District of Columbia (the “Superior Court”), brought this action against the District of Columbia (the “District”) alleging violations of numerous statutes, including Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (“ADA”), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (“Rehabilitation Act”), Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”), the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (“Equal Pay Act”), and the D.C. Human Rights Act (“DCHRA”). In addition, Cornish asserts common law claims for breach of contract, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligent infliction of emotional distress, and negligent supervision. The District has moved to dismiss many, but not all, of Cornish’s causes of action under Rule 12(b)(6) for failure to state a claim, as well as for summary judgment on the Title VII claims based on failure to exhaust administrative remedies and on various other claims for unliquidat-ed damages based on failure to comply with D.C. Code § 12-309. Upon consideration of the District’s motion, and the memoranda in support thereof and opposition thereto, the Court will grant in part and deny in part the motion.

II. BACKGROUND

A. Factual Allegations

Cornish is an African-American woman employed at the Superior Court since August 2008. See 2d Amend. Compl., ECF No. 8, at ¶¶ 4, 6. She began working as a program specialist in the Superior Court’s Paternity and Child Support Branch (“P & S Branch”) at a pay grade of JS-11, and in April 2011 she was reassigned to the Superior Court’s Budget and Finance Division, which is the position she currently holds. See id. ¶ 6. Sherry Coppet (“Coppet”) and Delores Henderson (“Henderson”), both of whom are African-American, were employees in the P & S Branch during Cornish’s tenure with the department. See id. ¶ 7. Coppet was the P & S Branch chief during the relevant period, and from August 2008 to March 2011 she served as Cornish’s immediate supervisor. See .id. ¶¶ 7-8. During that same period, Henderson served as an Intake/Calendar Section supervisor, a position subordinate in rank to that of Cornish. See id. ¶ 8. In March 2011, Henderson was promoted to P & S Branch supervisor, making her Cornish’s immediate supervisor. See id. ¶ 9.

1. Allegations of Harassment and Discrimination in the P & S Branch

Cornish alleges that she suffered “innumerable acts of often shocking hostility *349 and degrading treatment” while working in the P & S Branch. See id. ¶ 10. In particular, Cornish alleges that the hostility began during her initial interview for a position in the P & S Branch, when a clerk at the front desk told her that she “wasn’t going to make it” in the department because she was “too pretty” and dressed too nicely for Coppet’s liking. Id. ¶ 11. The clerk’s forewarning soon bore itself out through repeated “derogatory comments” from Coppet and Henderson about Cornish’s “conventionally feminine appearance and carefully coordinated apparel,” which Cornish alleges were made because the women “resented her deviation from what they considered conforming dress and personal appearance for an African American woman.” Id. ¶ 12. For example, a coworker once overheard Henderson compliment Cornish on her appearance and then comment behind Cornish’s back, “Oh, she thinks she’s so cute.” Id. ¶ 13. And sometimes when other people complimented Cornish, Coppet and Henderson would go into what one co-worker called “hater mode,” which was when they ordered coworkers not to give Cornish any compliments. See id.

Coppet and Henderson disparaged Cornish for being from Baltimore, Maryland, by playing on the alleged stereotype held by African-American women from Washington, D.C. about African-American women from Baltimore being prone to crude and violent behavior. See id. ¶ 14. For instance, one time after Cornish wished Coppet a “good morning,” Coppet reacted by “feign[ing] a dramatic, apprehensive reaction,” and saying that she thought Cornish was “going to hit me or something.” Id. On another occasion, Henderson remarked, “We almost forced out the Baltimore in her,” after a meeting in which Henderson and Coppet had “harassed and bullied” Cornish into becoming “flustered and agitated.” Id.

The behavior of Coppet and Henderson allegedly became increasingly more hostile over time, and they frequently insulted, humiliated, and intimidated Cornish in front of co-workers. See id. ¶¶ 15-16. For instance, Henderson called Cornish by her first name rather than using “Mr.” or “Ms.” like she did for other co-workers. See id. ¶ 18. In addition, Henderson, allegedly with Coppet’s encouragement, would question or countermand the directions Cornish gave to other employees, and Henderson would order Cornish to complete certain assignments even though her position and pay grade were below Cornish’s. See id. ¶ 20. Together, Henderson and Coppet also regularly forced Cornish to perform tasks below her pay grade, such as administrative and clerical duties, while they “giggl[ed]” and “snicker[ed]” when Cornish was instructed on these tasks by lower-ranked employees. See id. ¶ 21. On other occasions, the two women forced Cornish to stay beyond the time she was supposed to leave by giving assignments with arbitrary deadlines, often for that same night or the next morning. See id. ¶ 22.

The events around Thanksgiving 2010 provide an example of what Cornish allegedly endured at work. On Wednesday, November 24, 2010, the day before Thanksgiving and hours after Cornish’s coworkers had left under a grant of early dismissal, Cornish was forced to continue working to finish a project Coppet had assigned to her late that afternoon. See id. ¶24. While Cornish worked, Coppet walked by and said “good night” before turning off the office lights. See id. Later that night, a co-worker found Cornish sitting at her darkened workstation “extremely shaken and in severe distress.” Id. In the early-hours of the next morning, Cornish awoke at home to discover that she had suffered a stroke while sleep *350 ing. See id. ¶ 25. The stroke left Cornish partially paralyzed, able to take- steps only to the left, and with limited speech abilities. See id. Cornish alleges that “the extreme stress and constant psychic shocks and insults of her mistreatment at work directly or indirectly precipitated her stroke.” Id.

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Bluebook (online)
67 F. Supp. 3d 345, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 129198, 2014 WL 4583637, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cornish-v-district-of-columbia-dcd-2014.