It's deja vu for Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise, a nonprofit Chattanooga agency that in 2012 was rocked by accusations against its then-leader David Johnson by ex-employees who accused him of sexual harassment, mishandled funds and racist remarks.
The woman hired in 2013 to replace Johnson after a nationwide search, CNE President and CEO Martina Guilfoil, now faces those allegations in a $5 million lawsuit filed by CNE's former Chief Financial Officer Carlos Camacho, who was fired in June of last year.
Guilfoil tried to "dance provocatively" with Camacho during a meeting shortly after Guilfoil was hired, the lawsuit alleges, and when he refused, she told Camacho he was not "man enough" for her.
Guilfoil constantly mocked the accent of Camacho, who's from Bolivia, the lawsuit alleges.
And when Camacho and two African American employees won a laser tag competition during the CNE's 2014 Christmas party at Pin Strikes bowling alley, the suit says Guilfoil told Camacho it was only "because everyone on your team is dark and we could not see you."
Guilfoil wouldn't comment Monday about any details of the lawsuit, which CNE was served with Friday and hasn't yet responded to.
"The suit has no merit. That is what I'm allowed to say," she said. "In regards to the charges of mismanagement, CNE obtained a clean audit for the period in question by an independent auditor as well as an exemplary rating by NeighborWorks America."
Camacho was fired under the pretext of "lack of work," his lawsuit says, when his termination was actually "retaliation" after he found that under Guilfoil's direction, CNE gave false figures to the city, paid expenses from the wrong accounts and mismanaged loans.
The $5 million Camacho seeks in the lawsuit would cover such damages as lost time of work "backward and forward since reinstatement would place Camacho in a hostile environment" and punitive damages to keep CNE from "repeating this wrong."
Camacho, himself, was the target of complaints, during Johnson's time at the helm of CNE, according to Times Free Press archives. One employee who said Johnson harassed her from 2008 to 2012, including demands to see her cleavage, "front hugs" and drunken advances at parties, said in a court filing that "Carlos told me to keep it quiet."
Documents filed in 2012 in Hamilton County Circuit Court and the Tennessee Human Rights Commission allege Camacho tried to get CNE employees to lie and say Property Manager Richard Maynor had been fired because he didn't follow procedures. Maynor alleged he was fired in 2011 after the workplace became hostile when he broke off a sexual relationship he had with Dawn Scates, who then was human resources and operations manager for CNE.
CNE is a nonprofit housing organization that handles federal funds received by the city whose motto is "dedicated to Building a Better Chattanooga." CNE says it makes residential loans, provides financial counseling, builds homes and revitalizes neighborhoods "in historically underserved parts of town."
CNE was organized three decades ago by then- mayor, now-U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn.
Contact staff writer Tim Omarzu at tomarzu@timesfreepress.com or www.facebook.com/MeetsForBusiness or on twitter@meetforbusiness or 423-757-6651.