ST. CROIX — An employee of the Virgin Islands Department of Finance recently filed a complaint in the Superior Court of the Virgin Islands alleging Finance Commissioner Kevin McCurdy retaliated against her in violation of the VI Whistleblower’s Protection Act after she reported him to the governor.
Lucy Nuñez, who served as treasury director for the Department of Finance, claims McCurdy assigned her job duties to lower-ranking employees, repeatedly made derogatory comments about her fitness to serve in her position, and demoted her to a less-senior position of financial manager at the Bureau of Information Technology.
Nuñez, in a six-page complaint filed March 5 by attorney Kareem Todman, claims McCurdy retaliated against her after she sent a letter to Governor Albert Bryan Jr. on October 8, 2024 outlining concerns she identified within the DOF’s Treasury Division in addition to concerns about McCurdy’s ability to lead the Department of Finance.
As director of the Treasury Division, Nuñez notes in her complaint that she had a fiduciary obligation to inform the governor of actions within the Department of Finance that undermined the objectives of his administration. She claims she has direct knowledge that McCurdy often allowed the DOF to submit inaccurate, incomplete, and untimely financial reports to the detriment of stakeholders, including financial auditors, the Legislature of the Virgin Islands, and the governor. Nuñez noted that she engaged in protected activities when she reported the actions to Bryan, claiming her demotion was in violation of the Whistleblower’s Protection Act. Even before Nuñez contacted the governor, she addressed her concerns to McCurdy in a virtual meeting that was recorded.
In her letter to the governor, Nuñez wrote that she communicated her observations in adherence to proper protocols on numerous occasions to McCurdy, but that they continued to be overlooked or discarded altogether, according to the letter, which was included in the complaint as an exhibit. She noted the success of the Department of Finance and entire government rests on the ability of DOF teams to work together to ensure a positive outcome, beginning with the ability of the leaders within the department to trust middle managers to execute processes accordingly. She wrote that issues such as not addressing staff poor time and attendance that affects performance and productivity, not involving her in her capacity as treasury director to interview and select qualified candidates to form part of the team or make recommendations for promotions, and directly or indirectly encouraging key information to be circumvented, among other concerns, are detrimental and counterproductive.
Although the governor did not directly meet with Nuñez upon receiving her letter, he arranged for her to meet with his chief of staff, Kevin Williams Sr., on October 24, 2024, according to the complaint. Following the meeting, Nuñez claims McCurdy began tasking lower-ranking DOF employees with duties typically reserved to her as treasury director. She claims McCurdy told her she needed to prove her worthiness for her role as treasury director because she was a Latina born in Puerto Rico, not the Virgin Islands.
On December 5, 2024, Nuñez learned via email with an attached letter from the governor that she had been demoted to a less-senior position of financial manager at the Bureau of Information Technology, according to the complaint. Upon searching her email, Nuñez noted that she also discovered an email from McCurdy that was sent late in the afternoon on December 4, 2024.
In addition to taking the opportunity to “congratulate” Nuñez on her new position that was in fact a demotion, McCurdy referred to the meeting she had with Williams. Nuñez claims the reference to the meeting indicated McCurdy’s true motives for sending the email. Nuñez indicated in her complaint that the fact she never expressed any interest in the financial manager position or interviewed for it, along with the manner she was informed of her demotion supports the inference that her demotion was a result of her protected activity.
The defendants named in the complaint are McCurdy, the Virgin Islands government, and the Department of Finance. Nuñez seeks a jury trial on all issues triable and judgment against the defendants in an amount as determined by the trier of facts for all costs and fees, attorney and witness fees, compensatory damages, prejudgment interest, post-judgment interest, and punitive damages. Nuñez also seeks reinstatement of her job at the Department of Finance, the payment of back wages, and full reinstatement of all fringe benefits and seniority rights, along with any other relief the court deems is just and proper.
