Mar. 8—TRAVERSE CITY — A former barista who said she discovered a hidden camera in the women’s restroom at Morsels coffee shop last August has sued Morsels and co-owners Edward and Angela Witkowski, claiming that they violated the Whistleblowers’ Protection Act when she was fired.
The lawsuit, filed on Jan. 31 by Olivia Scholten, also accuses Morsels and Edward Witkowski of sexual harassment, discrimination and invasion of privacy.
Olivia Scholten is the birth name of Eva Davis, a former barista at Morsels, Davis confirmed on Thursday. She declined to comment further, referring questions to her lawyer, Anders J. Gillis of Traverse City, who could not be reached.
In interviews last November, Davis and fellow barista Marlee Rickert told the Record-Eagle that, after discovering a tiny camera hidden in the wall socket of the women’s restroom at Morsels, they took photographs and recorded conversations before turning over their evidence to Traverse City police.
Police arrested Edward Witkowski on Nov. 10. He faces one felony count of using a computer to commit a crime, three felony counts of capturing/distributing an image of an unclothed person, and one misdemeanor count of lying to a police detective when he was questioned about the surveillance camera. He is scheduled for a preliminary examination on March 15 before 86th District Court Judge Robert A. Cooney.
No charges have been filed against Angela Witkowski. The Witkowskis are married.
Unlike Rickert, who said she resigned from Morsels immediately after going to the police, Davis continued working at the coffee shop until Nov. 14 — four days after Edward Witkowski was arrested. Davis said she was fired that day by Angela Witkowski and said she had continued working for Morsels because she needed the money.
The Witkowskis and Morsels are represented in the lawsuit by Grand Rapids-based attorneys John D. Gardiner and Cameron D. Ritsema from the law firm Bodman PLC. In a written response to a voicemail left for the two lawyers, Bodman spokesman Anthony Allegrina wrote, “It is our policy not to discuss client matters with the media.”
However, in their response to the lawsuit, Gardiner and Ritsema wrote that the defendants “were not aware of plaintiff’s initiation of any investigation … at the time of plaintiff’s adverse employment action.” They added that Edward Witkowski and Morsels “claim that their conduct was not extreme or outrageous, and if it was, it was not intentional or reckless beyond all bounds of decency.”
The attorneys further stated that Edward Witkowski and Morsels “did not violate plaintiff’s privacy, specifically in that defendant Edward Witkowski did not view plaintiff in private.”
Scholten’s lawsuit says she is requesting compensatory damages, lost wages, attorney fees and court costs.