A long-running dispute involving a Lynchburg firefighter has returned—this time in state court—following a Fourth Circuit decision last year that reopened the door for certain claims to proceed outside federal court.

Former Lynchburg Fire Department officer Mary Lynn Shumate has filed a new lawsuit in Lynchburg Circuit Court alleging retaliation after she reported what she characterized as sexist treatment within the department. The new suit follows earlier federal litigation that ended largely in the City’s favor, but with an important procedural ruling by the Fourth Circuit that set the stage for renewed state-court litigation.

Shumate was demoted in 2022 following an internal investigation into comments she made concerning a subordinate’s sexual orientation. The City concluded that the comments violated departmental policies governing conduct and harassment. Shumate, in turn, alleged that her demotion was motivated by sex discrimination and retaliation for earlier complaints about workplace treatment.

In May 2024, the US District Court for the Western District of Virginia granted summary judgment to the City on Shumate’s state and federal claims, rejecting both her gender discrimination and retaliation theories. We discussed that ruling in an earlier post when Lynchburg prevailed in federal court on those claims. More on that decision.

Shumate appealed, and in August 2025 the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed the district court’s rulings on the federal claims but took a different view of the handling of her state-law whistleblower claim. While the Fourth Circuit agreed that Shumate had not produced sufficient evidence to survive summary judgment on her Title VII claims, it vacated the dismissal of her claim under Virginia’s Fraud and Abuse Whistle Blower Protection Act.

The appellate court held that the district court erred in concluding that sovereign immunity barred the whistleblower claim in federal court. Although the court did not decide whether the claim ultimately should proceed in federal court, it made clear that the statute waives sovereign immunity for such claims in state court and that dismissal on immunity grounds was improper. The Fourth Circuit remanded the case for further proceedings, noting that the district court could either retain supplemental jurisdiction or decline it in favor of state court adjudication. More on the Fourth Circuit decision, including a copy of the ruling.

That ruling appears to have prompted the latest filing in Lynchburg Circuit Court. According to WSET ABC13 News, the new lawsuit alleges that Shumate faced retaliation after reporting what she perceived as sexist treatment by department leadership. The complaint itself is not available.

City officials have not publicly addressed the merits of the newly filed case. In the prior federal litigation, Lynchburg consistently maintained that Shumate’s demotion was based on policy violations identified through an independent investigation, not unlawful discrimination or retaliation. More on the story.