Jewel Redic v. Interfaith Community Housing of Delaware, Inc.

── Jewel Redic v. Interfaith Community Housing of Delaware, Inc. ── Court: Supreme Court of Delaware Date: April 22, 2026 Category: General IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE JEWEL REDIC, § § Plaintiff Below, § No. 347, 2025 Appellant, § § Court Below: Superior Court of v. § the State of Delaware INTERFAITH COMMUNITY § HOUSING OF DELAWARE, INC., § C.A. No. N23C-01-197 § Defendant Below, § Appellee. § § § Submitted: February 4, 2026 Decided: April 22, 2026 Before SEITZ, Chief Justice; VALIHURA and TRAYNOR, Justices. ORDER This 22nd day of April, 2026, after consideration of the parties’ briefs and the record on appeal, it appears to the Court that: (1) Appellant Jewel Redic sued his former employer, Appellee Interfaith Community Housing, for workers’ compensation discrimination and retaliation. After discovery, the Superior Court granted Interfaith’s Motion for Summary Judgment, holding that Redic had failed to establish a prima facie case for retaliatory termination. Redic appeals on two grounds. First, he contends that the court erred by concluding that he had not exercised, or attempted to exercise, his rights under Delaware’s Workers’ Compensation Act before his termination. Second, he posits that the court “apparently” 1 found no causal connection between the exercise of his rights under the Workers’ Compensation Act and his termination. Because we agree with the Superior Court’s conclusion that Redic did not exercise or attempt to exercise his rights under the Workers’ Compensation Act, we affirm the court’s judgment. (2) Interfaith is a non-profit organization that provides low-income families with a variety of services to guide them toward home ownership, self- sufficiency, and involvement in the community. On April 4, 2022, Interfaith hired Redic to be its new Chief Financial Officer. (3) Interfaith’s offices are located at 613 North Washington Street, in Wilmington, Delaware, a dangerous, high-crime area. (4) Interfaith maintains a policy under which all new hires are subject to a ninety-day probationary period beginning on the first day of employment. Under this policy, employees are not permitted to possess a key to the building until their probation has concluded. (5) During his probationary period, Redic arrived at the office each day between 7:00 and 7:30 a.m. Interfaith’s office was open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. As a result, Redic waited outside the office each morning until another employee let 1 Opening Br. at 2, 23. 2 him in. While waiting outside Interfaith’s offices, Redic regularly observed open drug transactions nearby. (6) During his employment, Redic was supervised by Executive Director Darlene Sample. A series of email exchanges between Sample and Redic during Redic’s brief tenure at Interfaith reflects his subpar job performance during the probationary period. 2 (7) Redic alleged that, one morning in either May or June, he was caught in an exchange of gunfire while waiting outside of Interfaith’s offices. According to Redic, he was forced to take cover to avoid being injured or killed. Redic alleged that this shooting incident traumatized him and that, in its wake he experienced anxiety, panic attacks, and post-traumatic stress syndrome. (8) Redic’s probationary period ended on July 4, 2022. On August 15, 2022, Sample informed Redic that his 90-day review was forthcoming, but had been delayed by “absences, pressi