Rodgers v. Gary Community School Corp.

167 F. Supp. 3d 940, 32 Am. Disabilities Cas. (BNA) 1094, 2016 WL 795890, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26098
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Indiana
DecidedMarch 1, 2016
DocketCAUSE NO. 2:12-CV-530 JD
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 167 F. Supp. 3d 940 (Rodgers v. Gary Community School Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Indiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rodgers v. Gary Community School Corp., 167 F. Supp. 3d 940, 32 Am. Disabilities Cas. (BNA) 1094, 2016 WL 795890, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26098 (N.D. Ind. 2016).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

JON E. DEGUILIO, Judge, United States District Court

This matter is before the Court on the: (1) “Motion for Summary Judgment,” filed by Defendant, Gary Community School Corporation, on July 30, 2015 [DE 29]; and (2) “Objection and Motion to Strike Plaintiff S.J. Exhibit A & Plaintiffs S.J. Exhibit B,” filed by Defendant, Gary Community School Corporation, on September 16, 2015 [DE 37], For the reasons set forth below, the Motion for Summary Judgment [DE 29] is GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART. The Motion for Summary Judgment is GRANTED as to Counts II and III and the Clerk is ORDERED to DISMISS WITH PREJUDICE Counts II and III of Plaintiffs complaint. The Motion for Summary Judgment is DENIED as to the reasonable accommodation claim under the ADA in Count I, which remains pending. The Objection and Motion to Strike [DE 37] is DENIED.

Background

Plaintiff, Latanya Rodgers, has been employed as a custodian by Defendant, the Gary Community School Corporation [945]*945(hereinafter “GCSC”), since 1995. In September 2011, Rodgers was sexually assaulted by a co-worker who grabbed and kissed her before she was able to escape. Rodgers claims she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of the attack at work. She brings three claims in the current lawsuit: Count I for violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq.; Count II for retaliatory harassment and discrimination in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5; and Count III for intentional infliction of emotional distress. GCSC has moved for summary judgment on all of Plaintiffs claims.

Undisputed Facts

Rodgers is a custodian with GCSC [Rodgers Dep. at 102]. Her duties include cleaning her assigned area and securing it [Id. at 103]. Normally her work schedule is between either 2:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. or 2:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. [Id. at 104], Her supervisor is Mr. Kenneth Smith, manager over operations [Id. at 105].

On September 16, 2011, Rodgers was sexually assaulted by a co-worker while she was cleaning a restroom at the school [Comp. ¶ 1]. After the incident, Rodgers began to suffer panic attacks [Rodgers Dep. at 23]. The employee responsible for the attack was fired by GCSC based upon the incident [Id.]. Rodgers was sued by the co-worker in small claims court, she counter sued, and received a judgment against him [Id. at 31].

Rodgers filed a workers’ compensation claim and received approximately $17,000 for the claim [Rodgers Dep. at 101]. On February 22, 2012 (prior to her returning to work), Plaintiffs workers’ compensation mental health treatment provider, Mary Mirro, drafted a letter [DE 32-1]. The letter states that “Ms. Rodgers has been experiencing Post Traumatic Stress Symptoms since the incident.” [Id] The mental health treatment provider made several recommendations: (1) there will always be proper lighting in the parking lot and around the school building and dumpster area; (2) Rodgers or any custodial staff member should never be left alone in the school building; (3) the custodial staff should work together as a team, for example, walk each other out to the parking lot at the end of the shift; and (4) no person should take the garbage out by themselves [DE 32-1]. According to Rodgers, her doctor wrote out the requested accommodations, and “submitted those to, you know, my building people.” [Rodgers Dep. at 79.] Rodgers testified during her deposition that no one from GCSC ever sat down with her and discussed the recommendations of Mirro dated February 20, 2012 [Id. at 174-75],

Dr. Michael Kovacich issued Rodgers a doctor’s note stating she “has been under my care and has been released as of April 16, 2012.” [DE 30-5.] She felt forced to return to work after Rodgers received a phone call from Defendant’s administrative personnel advising her that her benefits would be terminated if she did not return to work [Rodgers Dep. at 51-52]. On April 16, 2012, Rodgers returned to work and has been working full-time as a custodian until the present [Id. at 53].

On May 7, 2012, Rodgers’ workers’ compensation treatment provider drafted a second, more detailed letter to GCSC saying Rodgers was referred to her by Lynn Karfomenos, a medical case manager, nurse life care planner, and legal nurse consultant, and Mirro “concurred with the diagnosis that was made from the EAP counseling service, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).” [DE 32-2.] Mirro also stated in the letter that on January 20, 2012, Rodgers presented as being “anxious, withdrawn and fearful.” [Id.] Mirro saw Rodgers twice during the week of [946]*946April 30, 2012, and the provider reported that “[although she feels very frustrated and angry about the Gary School Corpora-' tion and how she has been treated, I believe that Ms. Rodgers is realizing that she is stronger than she thought. I encouraged her to return to work and do the best that she could. She agreed to do so.” [DE 32-2 at 2.]

Rodgers testified during her deposition that GCSC did not consistently accomplish Mirro’s requested accommodations. Specifically, she said about the school parking lot that “they finally got some of the lights to work. They worked for a moment, but then they went out.” [Rodgers Dep. at 176.] Ultimately, Rodgers said there was not a resolution to the lighting issue [Id. at 177]. Rodgers also testified that the teamwork approach was never really implemented, and there was no additional training for the custodial staff [Id. at 178-79]. After she returned to work, Rodgers was put in a position where she was expected to take the garbage out by herself [Id. at 179].

Rodgers gave deposition testimony that after the assault on September 11, 2011, she was diagnosed by a GCSC doctor with high blood pressure, anxiety, panic attacks, syncopal stress, and post-traumatic stress disorder, which she claims affect her daily life [Rodgers Dep. at 87-99, 157-59, 166-67]. She claims her conditions often prevent her from being able to think clearly, to concentrate, they disrupt her sleep, and have affected her ability to interact and communicate normally with other people [Id. at 7, 163-64, 166-67]. Rodgers testified that she suffered an episode of stress-related syncope and high blood pressure shortly after she returned to work, and the episode resulted in Rodgers being transported to the hospital [Id. at 68-69, 184-85]. Rodgers was seen and treated in the emergency department on April 25, 2012, and was released with the direction that “she may return to work in 3 days.” [DE 30-3.]

Rodgers filed a charge of discrimination with the Gary Human Relations Commission and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) dated May 23, 2012 [DE 30-1]. She received a right to sue notice from the EEOC on September 24, 2014 [Compl. ¶ 2], The complaint also alleges that Rodgers was “denied a promotion or hiring to which she would have been entitled.” [Id. ¶ 18.]

Discussion

Summary judgment must- be granted when “there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a).

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167 F. Supp. 3d 940, 32 Am. Disabilities Cas. (BNA) 1094, 2016 WL 795890, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26098, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rodgers-v-gary-community-school-corp-innd-2016.