Multiple lawsuits filed against Doña Ana County Sheriff Kim Stewart, alleging retaliation and workplace misconduct

UPDATE: Doña Ana County manager Fernando Macias has responded to ABC-7's request for comment regarding the lawsuits. In a phone call, Macias said "from my perspective, there is information contained in the complaints that is not correct, and that may give the public a different understanding of what occurred relating to the allegations of the three lawsuits.”

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico (KVIA) -- Doña Ana County Sheriff Kim Stewart has been hit with three civil lawsuits from two former employees and one current employee, all three of which are alleging the sheriff's office and the county of Whistleblower Protection Act violations.

ABC-7 obtained the suits via our news partners KOAT in Albuquerque.

The plaintiffs include Andrea Ferrales-Narvaez, who was the undersheriff from September, 2021 to January, 2022, Eric Flores, who is currently a lieutenant with DASO, and Manion Paul long, a former 22-year employee of DASO who was most recently captain.

The first lawsuit claims Ferrales-Nevarrez refused to go along with illegal and improper conduct on the part of DASO, Kim Stewart, county manager Fernando Macias, and the county.

The lawsuit says Stewart retaliated against Ferrales-Narvaez after she pushed back against her for committing acts improper to the law and DASO procedures, which include the sheriff’s targeting of an employee and "making their lives miserable in hopes of having them quit or setting them up to be fired."

The lawsuit also accuses a private counselor, who was hired by the sheriff to run their peer support group, of acting inappropriately against Ferrales-Narvaez during a training trip, including "grinding sexually" against her and disclosing several client's names to her while intoxicated, including Stewart.

The lawsuit claims Stewart retaliated against Ferrales-Narvaez when she brought the matter to her attention, ultimately leading to her being fired "without reason."

The second lawsuit claims Eric Flores, a 15-year employee of DASO, was finally promoted to lieutenant in 2022 after years of harassment and bullying by Stewart.

The suit accuses the sheriff of promoting selected candidates that were handpicked, rather than following procedures set up by a company that was hired by Stewart in 2020 to help find the best candidates for open positions.

The suit also claims Flores didn’t receive a promotion because his he and his wife, Sergeant Eden Flores, were active union members that told the union board to push back against Stewart for alleged improper conduct.

The suit alleges that Stewart told other staff that she did not trust Flores or his wife due to their union affiliation.

The third suit alleges Stewart retaliated against Manion Paul Long, a 22-year DASO employee, after he refused to go along with "corrupt behavior," claiming she forced him to work from home, and then accuses her of ultimately cutting off his access to all of DASO systems.

The suit says Paul Long, who was planning to retire at the time, was also fired.

All three suits state that Stewart is "notorious for creating hostile work environments."

Both Ferrales-Narvaez and Paul Long are requesting actual and compensatory damages, including double lost back-pay and future lost pay, as well as equitable remedies that include a future positive employment reference from the department.

ABC-7 has reached out to Attorney Amy Orlando with the Justice Legal Team, who is representing all three plaintiffs. A spokesperson said they are working on getting us a statement.

ABC-7 also reached out to both Sheriff Kim Stewart and county manager Fernando Macias.

Stewart says she cannot comment on ongoing litigation.

Copies of all three lawsuits are linked in this article.

This is a developing story. Stay tuned on-air and online at KVIA.com for the latest updates as soon as we get them.