Lawsuit accuses Jefferson City non-profit of misconduct, retaliation

Two women have sued a Jefferson City nonprofit for allegedly mistreating an employee and a person who was using the group’s services.

The two women are both former case workers at New Horizons Community Support Services Inc, a nonprofit mental health program. They both allege that in 2013, officials at New Horizons assigned an African-American case workers to a consumer with a history of violent case worker interactions. According to the lawsuit, the consumer was also “a known racist.” The purpose of the assignment was allegedly to get the consumer to stop using New Horizons’ services.

During one of their interactions, the consumer attacked the case worker, which caused the case worker to be hospitalized. The two plaintiffs filed a report on the New Horizons officials who made the appointment, alleging mistreatment of the consumer and the employee. The two said when the report was filed, they were both reprimanded and fired.

The plaintiffs have sued for court and attorney fees, as well as a financial payment designed to “punish Defendant New Horizons and deter Defendant New Horizons and others from like conduct.”