MORGANTOWN — A lawsuit filed Jan.30 in Monongalia County Circuit Court claims the city of Morgantown failed to take “meaningful corrective action” to stop sexual harassment in its engineering and public works department despite known issues.
The suit was filed by Engineering Technician Sarahlin Duley and names the city, former employee Daniel Fluharty, current Acting City Manager Damien Davis (in his normal role as director of engineering and public works) and public works supervisor David Shrout as defendants.
Fluharty, whose tenure as deputy director of public works lasted about six months – from October 2022 to April 2023 – is identified as the perpetrator of the harassment. Davis and Shrout, the suit states, knew of the behavior but aided and abetted Fluharty in their supervisory roles by not taking appropriate steps to remedy the situation.
According to the suit, Duley, another female employee (Erin Fullmer), Fluharty and Shrout worked in close proximity out of office space at the Morgantown Municipal Airport.
The lawsuit states Fluherty made Duley clean up after him, prepare him food and coffee, talked openly about his sex life, made repeated comments about the womens’ bodies and attire, touched both women unnecessarily and inappropriately, displayed a nude photo of a woman he claimed was his wife and routinely lingered over the work stations of both women.
“What I experienced was degrading, humiliating, and preventable,” Duley said in a press release issued by her legal counsel. “I chose to work for the city to give back to the community in which I was raised, and am advocating not just for myself but for anyone who has been violated in the workplace.”
According to the lawsuit, Assistant City Manager Emily Muzzarelli witnessed Fluharty touch Fullmer during a meeting at city hall. Upon following up, Muzzarelli was told Fluharty had touched Fullmer inappropriately prior to that instance.
Muzzarelli counseled Fluharty via email – a response characterized by Duley’s attorneys as “a slap on the wrist” given the city’s zero-tolerance harassment policy.
“This lawsuit is about public trust and accountability,” attorney Todd Bailess of Bailess Law Firm said. “Sexual harassment is not just morally wrong—it’s illegal. Employers, especially government entities, must take allegations of sexual harassment seriously and adhere to policies to protect their employees. The city of Morgantown failed in that duty, and we hope this lawsuit serves as a wake-up call to prioritize the safety of all city workers.”
Some time after Muzarelli’s email, the suit claims Fluharty used his phone to display a nude image in a manner that his female coworkers would see it.
The filing claims Davis was aware of the photo, but no action was taken until Duley and Fullmer requested a meeting with human resources on March 30, 2023.
That meeting was held the same day. Fluharty was placed on administrative leave on April 3 and terminated on April 17.
In a statement released Thursday, Morgantown Communications Director Brad Riffee said the city took “prompt and appropriate action” when learning of the conduct.
“The safety of our employees and community is our highest priority. Our city staff have taken the necessary steps to address this matter and will continue to promote an equitable working environment for all of our employees,” Riffee said. “While we attempted to resolve this issue with Ms. Duley, the City is confident that the judicial process will lead to an appropriate resolution.”
