SALT LAKE CITY — Attorneys for Operation Underground Railroad (OUR) have filed a countersuit against a woman and her husband who accused the nonprofit of mishandling reports of sexual misconduct against its former CEO Tim Ballard.
Celeste Borys, who worked as Ballard’s executive assistant, said she was manipulated and sexually assaulted by Ballard over a span of approximately one year.
“I wanted to help fight the bad guys,” Borys said. “Instead, I became an easy target... I was molested and sexually assaulted by Tim (Ballard) in four different states, five different countries, in the span of ten months."”
While OUR’s board ultimately concluded Ballard may have victimized women, the nonprofit maintains Borys did not report Ballard’s misconduct – instead defending him and making it more difficult for OUR to conduct an internal investigation.
According to the countersuit, Borys repeatedly clashed with another female accuser who is currently only being identified by the pseudonym “JJ.”
OUR states Borys referred to the allegations as “fake news” and “evil” until ultimately deciding to publicize that she too was a victim.
JJ was the first to file an HR complaint against Ballard on April 24, 2023, according to OUR.
The nonprofit states it acted quickly to place Ballard on leave and eventually require him to resign on June 23, 2023.
“OUR will continue to support victims of sexual exploitation in all forms and will defend its name against false allegations, as in the case with the Borys litigation,” wrote OUR attorney Jennifer Terry. “Ms. Borys’s own words and text messages paint a very different picture than the narrative she presented. Ms. Borys was one of the staunchest opponents of the allegations against Mr. Ballard and was not afraid to make her opinion known.”
According to OUR’s countersuit, Ballard threatened OUR Chief Operating Officer David Jacobs with termination “if he believed” the sexual misconduct allegations.
OUR says the investigation of Ballard was largely conducted in May. The nonprofit states Borys used paid time off to travel with Ballard while he was on administrative leave as they promoted the feature film Sound of Freedom. The nonprofit insists the movie had little to do with OUR, characterizing it as a film “loosely” based on the “perceived life events” of Ballard prior to OUR’s existence.
“While the success of Sound of Freedom and prior documentaries about OUR succeeded in raising awareness about the widespread problems of human trafficking, it created the misperception that OUR's primary activity is conducting 'paramilitary drop-ins' or 'raids,'” the countersuit reads. “This perception is incorrect.”
According to the nonprofit, Borys’ contracts with OUR were supposed to preclude her from filing a lawsuit or publicizing confidential information about the company. Attorneys for OUR say it’s "clear” that she “understood the legal effect of signing the Release Agreement.”
Borys and her attorneys initially filed lawsuits on October 9 and October 10, attaching several records that she would have likely only had access to because of her job as Ballard’s executive assistant. Some of the records were marked “attorney-client privilege.”
The countersuit states Borys inappropriately used her access to the company's computers or online accounts “for her own fraudulent purposes and personal benefit.”
Attorneys for Borys have stated any contracts she signed with OUR are “void ab initio” (void from the beginning) because of the nonprofit’s attempts to “hide the crimes of Ballard.”
Celeste Borys’ husband, Mike Borys, stated Ballard was initially fired but eventually rehired so he could quietly resign and save face upon completion of the sexual misconduct investigation.
OUR is now suing both Celeste Borys and Mike Borys for defamation. The nonprofit is also accusing Celeste Borys of breach of contract, fraud, and violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.
OUR and its board have also filed motions to dismiss the Borys lawsuit.
In response, attorney Mike Green accused OUR of “retraumatizing” his clients.
“While OUR’s counterclaims were not unexpected, OUR’s retraumatizing of victims is disappointingly consistent with its corporate culture,” he wrote. “The Borys look forward to defending these counterclaims and the broadened discovery of OUR’s internal workings these counterclaims provide.”
Celeste Borys reported Ballard for sexual assault to the Lindon Police Department. Her attorneys say she gave investigators a piece of clothing that Ballard ejaculated on.