She flagged a grant she believed skipped vetting. Days later, her "credibility" was in question
A former American Red Cross executive director claims she was forced out of her job after raising concerns about how a city grant was accepted, according to a lawsuit filed this week.
Elise Levine, who joined the American National Red Cross in July 2021 and rose to executive director of the Northern Valleys Chapter, took her case to the US District Court for the Central District of California on April 23, 2026. Her suit, Levine v. American National Red Cross Blood Services, et al., No. 8:26-cv-00969, accuses the nonprofit of retaliating against her under California's whistleblower law after she flagged what she believed to be a breakdown in the organization's internal controls.
The filing traces the trouble back to early August 2024. Levine says she discovered that a monetary grant from the City of Inglewood to a local chapter had been accepted without going through the Red Cross's required vetting process, which normally includes a review by the organization's Center for Excellence. She suspected, according to the complaint, that the chief executive had signed off on the money directly.
Levine says she did what employees are trained to do. She raised her concerns with the government relations director, who in turn directed her to the Corporate Ombuds. The Ombuds, the filing states, told her to investigate further. She interviewed colleagues, including another executive...
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