Columbia ignored months of sex harassment, ex-employee’s lawsuit alleges
Shamarraa Bellamy was only a couple of months into a new job with Columbia’s Wastewater Maintenance Division when an older male colleague told her he would like to be locked in a room with her, and later asked how much it would cost to spend a night with her, according to a lawsuit filed by Bellamy against the city of Columbia alleging sexual harassment, a hostile work environment, and retaliation for reporting the behavior.
Bellamy spent months on the receiving end of graphic sexual propositions, comments about her breasts, nonconsensual touching and ridicule from co-workers after reporting the behavior, the lawsuit filed against the city of Columbia in state circuit court Feb. 16 alleges.
The behavior from her co-worker, Clifton King, included groping her leg while in a vehicle together, talking explicitly about oral sex, and making repeated comments about her breasts and physical appearance, the lawsuit states.
During her roughly 8 months of employment with the city, Bellamy experienced almost constant sexual harassment from King, the lawsuit states. She reported the behavior four times to her supervisor before the city’s human resources department got involved, and after HR became involved, Bellamy was ridiculed and ostracized by her co-workers, ultimately causing her to leave the job, the lawsuit states.
Bellamy’s attorneys, Elizabeth Bowen and Herbert Louthian, said they plan to take the case to a jury trial but would also consider a settlement with the city.
“We’re disappointed that it’s come to this point and that the city didn’t take action immediately upon becoming aware of the situation,” Bowen told The State. “This has completely affected (Bellamy’s) life.”
A Columbia spokesperson told The State the city does not comment on pending litigation.
What the lawsuit alleges
Bellamy started her job with Columbia’s Wastewater Maintenance Division in May 2022. Two months later, she was assigned to a team with King, who was also a city employee at that time, according to the lawsuit.
On her first day working with King, he told her that he “would love to be locked into a room” with Bellamy, and that she was “a very attractive woman,” the lawsuit states. Bellamy immediately reported the incident to her supervisor, but “no effective remedial action was taken,” according to the lawsuit.
After being assigned to the team with King, the lawsuit states Bellamy experienced daily unwanted sexual advances, including explicit propositions to give and receive oral sex. The comments only stopped for a period of several weeks when King was absent from work for health reasons, according to the lawsuit.
“King would slam the work truck’s brakes to make (Bellamy’s) breasts bounce, grab her thighs while driving to job sites, poke her ribs, and stand behind her staring at her buttocks,” the lawsuit reads.
Bellamy reported the behavior to her supervisor Trevor Rugg four times, and each time Rugg told her he would “handle it,” but nothing changed, the lawsuit states.
In mid-October 2022, Bellamy brought the issue to the city’s human resources division “after her repeated complaints to Rugg were ignored,” the lawsuit states.
In late October 2022, the city put King and Rugg on leave. The city fired King and reinstated Rugg, the lawsuit states.
After reporting the situation, Bellamy’s co-workers stopped speaking to her, refused to work with her and called her derogatory names, according to the suit.
In January 2023, during a mandatory training seminar on discrimination and harassment, Bellamy’s co-workers “mocked, laughed at, and singled out,” Bellamy, according to the lawsuit.
Bellamy’s lawsuit says the city failed to protect her from hostility and humiliation, and created an ongoing hostile environment ultimately forcing her to resign from the city Jan. 26, 2023.
The city of Columbia would not provide The State with start and end dates of employment or confirm the employment status of those mentioned in the lawsuit, telling a reporter to instead file a Freedom of Information Request. Rugg remained a city employee as recently as July 2025, according a city document.
Will it go to trial?
Bellamy’s attorneys are hoping a jury will award her money to cover things like back pay and lost insurance, but also pain and suffering. The lawsuit does not identify an exact dollar amount Bellamy is hoping to be awarded, leaving that determination to a jury.
The case could be settled before it gets to that stage, “if an opportunity and the right amount for settlement arises,” Bowen said.
While Bellamy hasn’t been employed by the city since early 2023 and now lives in Pennsylvania, the case had to go through administrative channels before Bellamy could file suit, Bowen explained. The discrimination claim had to be filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, for example.
The city should have been served the lawsuit within the past week and must respond within 30 days, Bowen, Bellamy’s attorney, said.
