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Denver Area Casino Employee Was Assaulted by A Guest and Terminated After Reporting the Incident

Anderson Barkley LLC June 2, 2020

A woman who used to work at the Wildwood Casino in Colorado filed a lawsuit related to sexual harassment and retaliation.

Known Casino Guest Consistently Assaulted and Distracted Employees

The case was brought in the local U.S. District Court against the defendant known as American Gaming Group, LLC. Most of the facts involved a longtime guest of the casino who had a reputation for harassing others, yet the casino’s management did nothing to stop the behavior.

One of the key points of the employment lawsuit is that during a night in May of 2017, a regular guest, nicknamed “Scary Larry” due to his consistent acts of harassment, had grabbed the plaintiff by the crotch. The incident was reported to the police, and Larry was arrested that night. However, the lawsuit continues to state that despite this incident and others, the plaintiff was blamed for similar problems occurring and she was eventually forced out of her position.

The information in the case includes details about the casino environment where Larry had previously been reported by witnesses, guests, other employees, and even managers. The plaintiff’s attorney says that despite these prior incidents, the company did nothing to protect its employees. The lawsuit further alleges that these actions had gone on for months before the night the perpetrator was arrested, and he was even reported for other illegal actions that same day before he assaulted the plaintiff. He was not excluded from the facility until after the plaintiff was harassed.

There are several other claims in the lawsuit. The complaint seeks damages for numerous acts of harassment and a hostile work environment. It also claims that the plaintiff was wrongfully terminated and suffered from retaliation at the hands of her superiors. When a representative from Wildwood Casino was asked about the charges, he did not respond.

The casino is located south of Denver near the Colorado Springs and Cripple Creek areas. Criminal records from Teller County show that Larry was eventually convicted of a misdemeanor for harassment in 2018.

Retaliation Claims

An employer is not allowed to take action against any employee for seeking legal help or exercising any protected right. If a court finds that an employee’s superiors retaliated against them for these reasons, they may be forced to pay additional damages or face other sanctions. The reasoning behind these laws is that employees would be afraid to report illegal behavior if it meant that they would lose their jobs for doing so, and their superiors would essentially be able to control them through fear of a job loss.

Sexual Harassment in Workplaces

An employer has an affirmative duty to keep their workers safe during the course of their employment. This type of safety includes not only physical acts of violence and assault, but also any kind of constant harassment that affects an employee’s ability to work normally and carry out their job duties.

Learn About Filing a Lawsuit Against an Employer

If a workplace allows employees to be abused or harassed, these actions may form the basis for a civil lawsuit. To learn more about bringing a case against an employer, contact Anderson Barkley Attorneys at Law.