Sundie Woodbury wins wrongful termination case against Housing Authority of Asotin County

ASOTIN — An Asotin County jury determined the Housing Authority of Asotin County violated state law by wrongfully firing Sundie Woodbury two years ago.

Woodbury was awarded $382,658 in damages at a civil trial conducted late last week in Asotin County Superior Court.

In a news release, her Spokane attorney, Matthew Crotty, said the wrongful termination followed the tragic death of Woodbury’s daughter in Arizona and a perceived disability. In addition, the agency broke the law by punishing his client after she exercised her right to retain a lawyer, and failed to accommodate her need for back surgery, he said.

At trial, the housing authority argued Woodbury quit or abandoned her job and failed to provide proper notice of leave. She also was accused of creating a conflict of interest by working a side job for the Asotin County Public Health District.

Asotin County Housing authorities and its attorneys could not be reached for comment Monday afternoon.

“I have never seen so many baseless claims thrown at someone claiming wrongful termination,” Crotty said in the news release.

Woodbury worked for the housing authority from October 2021 through December 2022. On Oct. 10, 2022, she was informed her daughter, Abriauna, had been killed by a drunk driver in Arizona, where the Clarkston teenager was attending Grand Canyon University. Her funeral was Oct. 29.

On Nov. 6, Woodbury texted Susan Clark, the executive director of the housing authority, listing three dates she could return to work. Instead, the director went to her house and suggested she apply for long-term disability, based on her upcoming surgery and the aftermath of losing a child, according to the lawsuit.

In the claim, Woodbury and her attorneys alleged Clark was aware Woodbury’s daughter had tragically died, yet she still made “cruel and insensitive comments regarding her mental state and mental health and fired her.” The conduct of the housing authority’s agent was described as “extreme and outrageous” in the complaint, and resulted in severe emotional distress for the plaintiff.

Woodbury hired Lewiston attorney Sam Creason, who reportedly cautioned the director against taking away any of Woodbury’s leave benefits. A week later, Woodbury’s personal belongings from her office were dropped off at Creason’s office, Crotty said.

Leading up to the termination, Woodbury had an emergency appendectomy in February 2022. After returning to work, she said Clark started to give her the silent treatment, but Woodbury had been told she was on track to become the next executive director.

In April of that same year, Woodbury learned she needed lower back surgery and would need to miss work for up to eight weeks in September. At that time, Woodbury said she was excluded from projects, including repositioning apartments in a flood zone.

In September of that year, Woodbury reportedly told Clark her back surgery had been denied by insurance, but her surgeon was appealing the decision. Woodbury was then told she would become an hourly employee and was removed from her supervisory position, according to the lawsuit.

Washington law makes it illegal to discriminate against someone with a perceived disability, Crotty said. In this case, the housing authority believed Woodbury was mentally ill following her daughter’s death, the attorney argued. She was fired after hiring an attorney to negotiate leave benefits, which is also against the law, Crotty said. Washington law also requires employers to accommodate workers who need surgery.

During the trial, testimony indicated HAAC wasn’t trained in preventing disability discrimination.

“Hopefully, this verdict gets the point across that such training is important,” Crotty said. “I hope the HAAC board ensures Ms. Clark is held accountable and training is implemented so this doesn’t happen again.”

Woodbury said she’s grateful to her attorneys and husband for their unwavering support during the legal proceedings.

“The past two years have been the most excruciating of my life,” she said in the news release.

She was represented by Crotty and Michael B. Love of the Riverside Law Group.

The Housing Authority of Asotin County was represented by Spokane attorneys Kammi Smith and Deanna Willman of the Witherspoon Brajcich McPhee law firm.

Sandaine can be reached at kerris@lmtribune.com.