Okoli v. City of Baltimore
| Decision Date | 08 August 2011 |
| Docket Number | No. 08–2198.,08–2198. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Fourth Circuit |
| Parties | Katrina OKOLI, Plaintiff–Appellant,v.CITY OF BALTIMORE, Defendant–Appellee,andJohn P. Stewart, Executive Director; Martin O'Malley, Mayor; Michael R. Enright, 1st Deputy Mayor; Colm O'Comartun, Special Assistant; Commission on Aging & Retirement Ed. (Care); Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, Defendants. |
OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE
ARGUED: April Gordon Dawson, North Carolina Central University School of Law, Durham, North Carolina, for Appellant. David Eugene Ralph, Baltimore City Department of Law, Baltimore, Maryland, for Appellee. ON BRIEF: George A. Nilson, City Solicitor, William R. Phelan, Jr., Chief Solicitor, Baltimore City Department of Law, Baltimore, Maryland, for Appellee.Before KING, GREGORY, and WYNN, Circuit Judges.Vacated and remanded by published opinion. Judge GREGORY wrote the opinion, in which Judge KING and Judge WYNN joined. Judge WYNN wrote a separate opinion concurring in part and concurring in the judgment.
Appellant challenges the grant of summary judgment for her employer when her boss forcibly kissed her, fondled her leg, propositioned her, asked sexually explicit questions, described sexual activities he wished to perform, and then, after she spurned the advances and filed a harassment complaint, fired her. Because those allegations are sufficient to make out claims of hostile work environment, quid pro quo harassment, and retaliation, we vacate and remand.
We recite the facts, with reasonable inferences drawn, in favor of the non-movant, Katrina Okoli (Appellant–Plaintiff). See Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986).
John P. Stewart is the director of Baltimore's Commission on Aging and Retirement (“CARE”) and serves in the Mayor's cabinet. On June 21, 2004, Stewart hired Okoli, an African–American woman, to serve as his executive assistant. The parties agree that for the first few months, Stewart and Okoli worked well together.
Beginning in September 2004, things changed for the worse: Namely, Stewart began propositioning Okoli to have sex with him in a Jacuzzi as part of his sexual fantasy. He first did so on September 13, 2004, during a visit to a CARE facility.1 During a September 24, 2004 work meeting, Stewart then asked Okoli whether she was wearing any underwear, what color it was, and whether she would come to work the next day without underwear. Next, on October 4, 2004, Stewart told Okoli about a sexual experience he had with an African–American woman and her daughter. Okoli reacted with shock and disgust, which Stewart noticed. Another time, Stewart again mentioned this sexual experience with a mother and daughter. Okoli reiterated that the daughter would despise and regret having such a lewd sexual encounter with her mother. Stewart laughed it off and returned to work, as Okoli suggests he often did.
Stewart continued to proposition Okoli about his Jacuzzi fantasy, and on November 10, 2004, asked her to sit on his lap and to join him in a Jacuzzi in Las Vegas. Whenever Stewart traveled, he continued to request Okoli to join him in his Jacuzzi, and became angry when she rejected his advances. Furthermore, Stewart touched Okoli's legs under the conference table “two or three times” during their morning meetings. J.A. 17B, 105–06, 319–20. Whenever this occurred, Okoli would move away from Stewart and tell him “don't do that.” J.A. 17B. In November 2004, Okoli met with a manager about transferring to another department, and in January, Stewart gave her an “informal” performance review with areas of suggested improvement. J.A. 71–72.
On January 10, 2005, Stewart asked Okoli to come back in a conference room, then forcibly grabbed and kissed her. Okoli pushed him away and ran out the door. She was so distraught that she went home and remained there for the day. When she returned to work the next day, Okoli stressed to Stewart that she still wanted to have only a professional relationship. While he initially said “O.K.,” Stewart repeated his Jacuzzi fantasy again that same day. J.A. 9, 17B, 90–91.2
Okoli then began reaching out for help in various ways, to no avail: On January 26, 2005, Okoli emailed Alvin Gillard, the Executive Director of the Baltimore Community Relations Commission, asking to speak with him about “a complaint.” J.A. 149. Gillard never responded. On March 23, 2005, Okoli emailed Gillard with a “high” importance flag, stating her desire to “file a harassment complaint against my supervisor, Mr. John P. Stewart.” J.A. 171–172. Gillard suggested she speak with an intake specialist during work hours. Okoli also emailed Michael Enright, the First Deputy Mayor, as well as Clarence Bishop, the Mayor's Chief of Staff, with a “high” importance request to meet with the Mayor as soon as possible. J.A. 176.
On April 1, 2005, Okoli sent a formal complaint to Mayor Martin O'Malley, copying Michael Enright and Clarence Bishop:
... Mr. Stewart displayed unethical and unprofessional business characteristics, e.g., harassment, degrading and dehumanizing yelling and demanding, disrespect, mocking and gossiping about other colleagues (anyone in the City government) and lack or disregard for integrity.
J.A. 197. Enright promptly forwarded that complaint on to Stewart through Enright's special assistant, Colm O'Comartun. Later that afternoon, Stewart fired Okoli.3
On April 3, 2005, Okoli approached Mayor O'Malley after a public speech and asked if he had reviewed her complaint; he said he had not, but would have someone look at it. In an April 5, 2005 memo to the Mayor, Stewart stated generally that he had “never been accused” of such sexual harassment in the past and denied the allegations in Okoli's April memo. J.A. 246–47. Stewart did not deny or address Okoli's specific allegations of sexual harassment in either of his two affidavits to the court.
A City human resources official, Kathy Phillips, met with Okoli on April 5, and said Okoli “shared three times in which she felt that she had been sexually harassed.” J.A. 203. Phillips concluded her written summary of the meeting by stating, J.A. 208.4
On April 29, 2005, Okoli repeated the same allegations to Yolanda Winkler in the Mayor's office, who referred her to the Baltimore Community Relations Commission (BCRC). On May 5, 2005, Okoli filed a charge of discrimination with the BCRC, claiming harassment, retaliation, and “unsolicited inappropriate touching.” J.A. 212. On July 3, 2005, the Commission dismissed the action for lack of probable cause that Okoli had been discriminated against.
On September 26, 2006, Okoli initiated a pro se action against Stewart, Enright, O'Comartun, the Mayor, CARE, and the City Council of Baltimore (hereinafter, collectively known as “the City”). She asserted claims under Title VII, 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983, 1985, 2000e, common law, and Article 4 § 3–1 of the Baltimore City Code.
On November 16, 2006, the City filed a notice of removal to federal court, where Okoli amended her complaint. Both parties moved for summary judgment and the district court granted the City's motion. The court analyzed the same three issues which arise in this appeal, hostile work environment, quid pro quo harassment, and retaliation: First, regarding hostile work environment, the court stressed that there were “[j]ust three or four incidents [of physical contact] over a five month period,” and no physical threat to Okoli. J.A. 380. The court also reasoned that Stewart ceased his conduct on his own and “according to [Okoli's] own positive assessment of her job performance, it is clear that she does not believe that Stewart's conduct interfered with her work performance.” J.A. 380. The court emphasized that Okoli over-read certain inferences and innocuous gifts, and cited cases where similar or “more egregious” conduct did not constitute a hostile work environment. J.A. 381–82 (citing Hopkins v. Baltimore Gas & Elec. Co., 77 F.3d 745 (4th Cir.1996); Weiss v. Coca–Cola Bottling Co. of Chicago, 990 F.2d 333 (7th Cir.1993)).
Second, regarding quid pro quo, the district court found that there was a legitimate basis to fire Okoli due to “performance issues,” namely her attitude, errors, and absence. J.A. 385. The court found these to be valid grounds for terminating an at-will employee and concluded that her other allegations of adverse actions were not actionable.
Third, regarding retaliation, the district court found that it was “questionable whether the sending of this letter [to the Mayor] constitutes ‘protected activity,’ ” because Okoli made “simply a general complaint about Stewart's unprofessional behavior....” J.A. 389. Even assuming this was protected activity, the court found the retaliation claim failed because Stewart made the decision to terminate her before she sent the letter. The court relied on a computer file's timestamp to establish this fact.
“In reviewing the grant or denial of a motion for summary judgment, an appellate court conducts a de novo review....” Williams v. Griffin, 952 F.2d 820, 823 (4th Cir.1991). We draw “[a]ll inferences ... in a light most favorable to the non-movant.” Id.
First, Okoli alleges she was subject to a hostile work environment. “To demonstrate sexual harassment and/or a racially hostile work environment, a plaintiff must show that there is ‘(1) unwelcome conduct; (2) that is based on the plaintiff's sex [and/or race]; (3) which is sufficiently severe or pervasive to alter the plaintiff's conditions of employment and to create an abusive work environment; and (4) which is imputable to the employer.’ ” Mosby–Grant v. City of Hagerstown...
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