Former Midwest Academy employee Cheyenne Jerred believes she lost her job because she reported the sexual abuse of a student to the State of Iowa.
Jerred’s attorney, Curtis Dial of Keokuk, filed a lawsuit against MWA on her behalf Dec. 30, 2015, at the South Lee County Courthouse in Keokuk.
The suit alleges wrongful discharge from employment/retaliatory discharge and violation against the whistleblower statute.
According to court documents, Jerred learned Nov. 28, 2015, that a female student at the training/boarding school claimed she had been sexually assaulted and harassed by an employee.
Jerred advised the girl to report the alleged sexual abuse, and six days later, Jerred also reported the alleged child sexual abuse to public officials and law enforcement authorities.
The next day, Jerred was fired, according to the lawsuit. While being terminated, Jerred alleges she was told by a Midwest Academy representative that MWA was aware Jerred had made a report of suspected child abuse, according to the lawsuit.
Jerred claims the Midwest Academy employee told her “she should not have made the report nor encouraged the resident to report the sexual abuse,” the document states.
The lawsuit seeks compensation for past, present and future lost wages, attorney’s fees, court costs and other charges, as well as an “amount which will fully and fairly compensate Jerred for damages ... as a result of the wrongful discharge from employment.”
The whistleblower portion of the lawsuit stems from Jerred’s termination the day after reporting the alleged sexual abuse and harassment, and seeks similar damages.
Jerred requested a jury trial.
DHS spokeswoman Amy McCoy said any founded abuse allegations would be shared with local prosecutors and could cause the agency to add the caretaker responsible to the state’s child abuse registry, according to an Associated Press story.
McCoy said DHS does not license the academy or the treatment center, in response to request for information by the Daily Gate City.
According to the Department of Human Services website, the agency “has the legal authority to conduct an assessment of child abuse when it is alleged that the victim is a child and is subjected to one or more of the categories of child abuse defined in Iowa Code section 232.68: Physical abuse, mental injury, sexual abuse, child prostitution, presence of illegal drugs in a child’s body, denial of critical care, manufacturing or possession of a dangerous substance (defined in Iowa Code 232.2), bestiality in the presence of a child, allowing access to a registered sex offender or allowing access to obscene materials.
The abuse is the result of the acts or omissions of the person responsible for the care of the child.
The president of the academy and treatment center is listed as Benjamin Trane in state business filings, which show the academy was incorporated in 2003.
Trane said earlier this week that he has contacted a lawyer.
