A Taunton State Hospital nurse has sued the state, alleging that health officials failed to protect her after she reported a coworker for an alleged sexual assault that happened in a linen closet during an overnight shift. The nurse, identified in court records only as Jane Doe, filed her civil suit in Plymouth Superior Court on Tuesday, seeking more than $50,000 in damages and accusing her bosses of letting her alleged attacker stay on the job for months after her report.
According to the lawsuit, as reported by the Taunton Daily Gazette, a judge has agreed to keep the nurse's name out of the civil proceedings. The suit claims the Department of Mental Health and the Executive Office of Health and Human Services failed to support her while her complaint was pending, and that two coworkers close to the accused man, identified as Charlene Woods and Patricia Harris, mounted a retaliation campaign against her.
What the Nurse Says Happened in the Linen Closet
The nurse told investigators that a coworker identified as Green assaulted her during an overnight shift on Sept. 8, 2025, inside a hospital linen closet where staff routinely sit on the floor to rest, per the same account. Green entered the closet to wake her, and according to the complaint he was holding the head of his exposed penis approximately six inches from her face. She told him to put it away, the complaint states, but he allegedly put his hand down her pants and pulled her toward him, and she believed she was about to be raped, according to the complaint.
The nurse says Green then threatened her if she told anyone what he had done. Court records indicate Green has a home address in New Bedford, according to the plaintiff. He was later arrested and criminally charged, and the nurse obtained a restraining order against him, which a judge has since extended by one year.
Months on the Job After Arrest, Attorney Says
Her attorney, Peter S. Farrell of Duxbury, said Green remained employed for roughly nine months after the alleged assault despite being arrested, charged, and ordered to stay away from the nurse. She alleges her bosses kept Green working at the hospital long after the alleged assault, and that supervisors tried to reassign her rather than move the coworkers she said were harassing her.
Farrell said the nurse wants the commonwealth to acknowledge what happened and change its practices to protect future complainants. Green faces criminal charges including indecent assault and battery. His attorney, Joseph F. Krowski, said Green maintains his innocence and said the civil case shows that the nurse is motivated by money.
Trial Date Looms as Civil Case Awaits Next Steps
The criminal case against Green was scheduled for trial on Oct. 21, with the possibility it could be heard earlier, according to court records. The civil case's next court date had not been set as of Wednesday.
The allegations arrive amid broader attention to safety inside Massachusetts behavioral-health facilities. State guidance published by Mass.gov identifies any physical assault or alleged physical assault on or by a covered individual or staff member as a reportable adverse incident, and separate state guidance says psychiatric hospitals with inpatient units must notify the Licensing Division of incidents on the unit within a specified timeframe. Massachusetts also maintains a Workplace Violence Prevention and Crisis Response Plan regulation under 101 CMR 19.00.
The case follows a pattern of scrutiny at other state-run psychiatric facilities. In April, a mental health worker was attacked at Tewksbury State Hospital, which CBS Boston described as the latest in a series of assaults there. The state has also touted efforts to expand protections for victims of sexual assault by health care providers, according to a Mass.gov announcement.
