On Dec. 14, 2007, plaintiff Suzanne Owsley, a public information officer for the Eureka Police Department, received an errant text message from Chief Garr Nielsen that stated “Sorry I was not much fun last night.” The message received the day after the office Christmas party. Owsley claimed that she believed that the message was meant for another employee who was allegedly having a relationship with Nielsen. She claimed that within days of her receiving the message and asking Nielsen about it, she was retaliated against. Owsley sued Nielsen; the records manager, Erin McBride; and their employers, the city of Eureka and the Eureka Police Department. She alleged that the defendants’ actions constituted harassment, retaliation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Owsley claimed that after asking about the text message, Nielsen demoted her from the position of public information officer to the position of police services officer in January 2008. She alleged that she was not notified about her change in assignment for about a month. Owsley also claimed that in February 2008, Nielsen changed her work locations to a police annex that lacked tables, desks and telephones, and to the front counter of the Eureka Police Department. She further claimed that she was assigned additional duties, such as cleaning the women’s locker room. In addition, Owsley claimed that McBride harassed her and Nielsen falsely reprimanded her for several allegations, which included insubordination, when she had a spotless employment record before that. The defendants claimed that a thorough evaluation of the plaintiff’s claims was performed and they were found to be without merit. Defense counsel also noted that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission investigated Owsley’s complaints and found that there were no employment violations., Owsley claimed that she suffered severe emotional distress as a result of the harassment. She alleged that as a result, she had to go out on medical leave for about one year on the orders of her doctor. However, she acknowledged that she has returned to her job about a year ago. Thus, Owsley sought recovery of damages for her emotional distress and loss of earnings.