Marrita Murphy
Marrita Murphy was a former employee of the New York Air National Guard who blew the whistle on their violations of six environmental statutes. Murphy was subsequently blacklisted in the industry for her disclosures. Murphy received compensation and damages for the retaliation she experienced, and her case set a precedent prohibiting the badmouthing of whistleblowers seeking employment.
Following her initial success, Murphy fought against the unfair taxation of whistleblower court awards for loss of reputation or emotional distress. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia initially ruled in her favor that this taxation was unconstitutional under the 16th Amendment, but that decision was later reversed. NWC continues to advocate against this unfair taxation and fight for whistleblowers facing such unfair circumstances.
