Alison McDaniel - 23 Who Made a Difference in RI in 2023

Alison McDaniel - 23 Who Made a Difference in RI in 2023

Alison McDaniel took on the boys' club in 2023.

The actress and event planner in July filed a ten-count federal lawsuit alleging that she was repeatedly sexually harassed and publicly humiliated by Paul Mihailides, the CEO and founder of the company that claims it is the “most amenity-rich, life-enhancing resort oasis in the nation” in Richmond, Rhode Island. 

According to McDaniel's lawsuit, she was hired for a top marketing position at The Preserve, and alleges she was then subject to nearly non-stop graphic sexual harassment.

GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST

The Preserve's counterclaims -- which included photos of McDaniel's modeling work -- her lawyer Mark Gagliardi said the inclusion of the racy snaps was not only extraneous, it paints a picture of "victim-blaming' by the defendants. 

“The Preserve’s retaliatory counterclaims filed [this week] are just another sad example of how Paul Mihailides bullies and punishes people who stand up for themselves and call him out for his bad behavior,” said Gagliardi. “Ms. McDaniel claims that Mr. Mihailides has regularly threatened other employees with legal action when they voluntarily ended their employment at the Preserve. Here, the counterclaims are all lies.”

"I am also deeply troubled by The Preserves’ attorneys’ attempts to 'victim shame' my client by including in the counterclaim decade-old photos of Ms. McDaniel in a swimsuit, implying that she did something wrong by posing as a swimsuit model,” said Gagliardi of photos contained in the countersuit. “These photos serve no legal purpose and are sexist, classic victim-blaming.”

McDaniel’s suit has led to two other women coming forward with allegations.