A wrongful termination lawsuit filed by Anahi Chavez Villegas, a former employee of the El Paso Zoo, has been dismissed after a settlement was reached. The lawsuit, initially filed in December 2024, accused her direct supervisor, John Kiseda, of sexual harassment and claimed that city officials failed to take appropriate action.

Allegations and Response

Villegas reported the alleged harassment in November 2023 to then Zoo Director Joe Montisano. According to the lawsuit, Montisano suggested that Villegas and Kiseda needed to ‘get used to each other’ and discouraged her from reporting the issue to human resources. Instead, he advised her to report any future concerns directly to him for internal handling. Despite this, human resources later acknowledged her complaint.

During the early months of 2024, Villegas claimed that both Montisano and Kiseda treated her unfairly. She was eventually terminated in April 2024 after missing work with permission, as stated in the lawsuit.

Outcome and Current Status

The case was dismissed with prejudice, indicating it cannot be refiled. Although a settlement was reached, the details remain confidential. Montisano has since resigned from his position with the city, while Kiseda continues to be employed by the city.

Efforts to obtain comments from Montisano, Villegas’ attorney, and the City of El Paso were unsuccessful, as the city declined to comment and neither Montisano nor Villegas’ attorney responded to requests. Additionally, the city denied a request to facilitate contact with Kiseda.

Original reporting: El Paso News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.