CHARLESTON — The former executive director is suing Enlivant Aid claiming she was wrongfully discharged after making complaints about conditions in the facility.
Enlivant Aid II ES LLC and Charleston Aid II OPOCO LLC were both named as defendants in the suit.
Lesia Comer-Warner was the executive director of the defendants' Charleston facility from May 18, 2021, until Sept. 23, 2022, according to a complaint filed in Kanawha Circuit Court.
Comer-Warner informed her supervisor on Aug. 24, 2021, about a mold problem in the facility and in September 2021, she moved out of her office because of dirty water and mold in her office and reported the issues to her supervisor.
In October 2021, water was leaking with black mold marks down the wall of a resident's room and Comer-Warner moved the resident to a new room and reported the mold to the supervisors.
"Scott Breedom served as the maintenance supervisor in the defendants' Charleston facility," the complaint states. "He informed plaintiff's supervisors that the air quality was not healthy for the residents. He was told, in response, by plaintiff's supervisors that the defendants were not making money in Charleston, that the residents were old and that they were going to die anyway."
Comer-Warner claims she continued to make complaints through April 2022 about the mold, as well as live and dead mice and/or rats and droppings throughout the facility, as well as dirty brown water leaking down the walls and the lack of proper heating for residents.
On May 12, 2022, Comer-Warner broke her ankle at work and received workers' compensation benefits, according to the suit.
After returning to work at the facility on Aug. 25, 2022, she was placed on leave without pay on Sept. 2, 2022, and then illegally fired on Sept. 23, 2022, according to the suit.
Comer-Warner claims the defendants violated the West Virginia Human Rights Act. She claims she was fired because of her past complaints and receiving workers' compensation benefits.
Comer-Warner is seeking compensatory and punitive damages. She is represented by Mark A. Atkinson of Atkinson & Frampton in Charleston.
The case is assigned to Circuit Judge Carrie Webster.
Kanawha Circuit Court case number: 23-C-17