By: Nick Carroway

A longtime Manhattan District Attorney’s Office worker claims she faced years of retaliation after taking time off to care for her ailing parents, turning the job she once loved into a “toxic environment,” as reported originally by the New York Post.

Joan Davila, who spent nearly four decades with the DA’s office, said that after using paid family leave starting in 2019 to help her elderly parents in Florida, her supervisors slowly stripped her of responsibilities and overtime, the NY Post first reported.

Davila, who began her career at the office right out of high school in 1984, said that she adored her work — rising from a clerk to eventually managing the high-stakes extradition office, the New York Post noted. But after she began taking months-long leaves to care for her parents, she claimed that office leadership turned cold, ignored her complaints, and retaliated when she returned.

“There’s no empathy,” Davila said, calling her once-beloved workplace a “toxic environment,” as reported by the NY Post. She said her troubles deepened when her supervisor gave away her position while she was on leave in 2023, leaving her feeling “devastated” and “coming back to nothing.”

According to the lawsuit filed in Manhattan Supreme Court, as highlighted by the New York Post, Davila’s attempts to raise concerns — including a letter to District Attorney Alvin Bragg himself — were brushed aside. Her lawyer, John Scola, emphasized that when the DA’s office violates anti-discrimination laws, it betrays the very ideals it’s supposed to defend.

After losing her role in extraditions, Davila was reassigned as head administrator for a trial bureau. But soon after, when she needed to take leave again in 2024 to help her ailing father, she says the retaliation resumed. Erratic deadlines, unclear instructions, and slashed overtime all felt like “sabotage,” she said, as reported originally by the NY Post.

Making matters worse, after returning from leave, Davila said she was verbally attacked by her supervisor, Siobhan Carty. According to her suit, Carty berated her for taking time off, accused her of faking complaints to build a legal case, and even threatened a demotion. During one particularly emotional meeting, when Davila mentioned her father — who had recently passed away from dementia and heart disease — Carty allegedly told her she didn’t understand “why you keep mentioning your father,” the NY Post first reported.

Things took an even darker turn when Davila’s health insurance was suddenly canceled in March, just as she began seeking medical care for her own stress-related issues. Two paychecks were also withheld, which Davila says was blatant retaliation, though the DA’s office denied responsibility, according to the New York Post.

Despite multiple formal complaints to the Office of Equal Employment Opportunity, Davila said that “no one did absolutely anything.” The Manhattan DA’s office did not respond to requests for comment, as reported by the NY Post.

For Davila, who grew up in Park Slope and once dreamed of making a difference in the justice system, the experience has been “devastating,” leaving emotional scars after years of dedication — and little acknowledgment.