Walmart employee, shooting survivor says she reported gunman's concerning behavior months ago

CHESAPEAKE, Va. — An employee who survived the Chesapeake Walmart mass shooting is now suing the company, saying she'd written complaints about the shooter months before.

Police say a team leader at the Walmart killed six people before taking his own life last Tuesday.

There were employees and customers in the store who survived the mass shooting and are still trying to process what happened. One of those workers is Donya Prioleau.

The law firm Morgan & Morgan wrote that they're representing Prioleau in her lawsuit.

"Prioleau, who had worked at the Walmart for more than a year, submitted a written complaint to Walmart about the killer’s behavior more than two months prior to the shooting, and alleges that Walmart acknowledged the complaint but then continued to employ the perpetrator as a shift lead despite having previously disciplined him for his cruel and inappropriate behavior," they said.

RELATED: What we know so far about the Walmart mass shooting in Chesapeake

The law firm says Prioleau was in the breakroom where the gunman killed several of her coworkers. They say she's severely traumatized. 

"While Ms. Prioleau narrowly avoided being shot, she allegedly witnessed her colleagues being brutally murdered as she ran out of the room and escaped," Morgan & Morgan said.

Her lawsuit alleges the gunman showed a pattern of concerning behavior leading up to November 22, including threats that people would "remember [his] name" if he was fired, and asking people if they'd received their active shooter training.

Lawyers John Morgan and Peter Anderson said Prioleau and her coworkers had been worried about a shooting like this for months.

"As workplace shootings and violence become horrifyingly common, employers have a responsibility to understand the warning signs and take threats seriously in order to protect their employees and customers. Our hearts are broken for the families of those who lost loved ones and for those, like Ms. Prioleau, whose lives will never be the same because of this trauma," they wrote. 

The suit was filed on Tuesday and seeks $50 million in damages.

On Wednesday, 13News Now spoke with Prioleau's mom, Brenda Allen, who said she followed up with Walmart's store manager on the formal complaint filed against the alleged shooter.

"They did say, go ahead, you know, you can file a formal complaint, but it didn't go any further than that," Allen said.

Echoing the lawsuit, Allen said her daughter is still dealing with trauma.

"Psychologically, she's tormented right now, "Allen said. "She's having a lot of sleepless nights. Obviously, she's had several panic attacks. One minute she seems okay, the next minute she just starts crying."

Read Prioleau's lawsuit below. WARNING: Some of the content is graphic in nature.