Loos v. City of Concord, N.C., 92-1763
| Citation | 989 F.2d 493 |
| Decision Date | 04 February 1993 |
| Docket Number | No. 92-1763,92-1763 |
| Parties | NOTICE: Fourth Circuit I.O.P. 36.6 states that citation of unpublished dispositions is disfavored except for establishing res judicata, estoppel, or the law of the case and requires service of copies of cited unpublished dispositions of the Fourth Circuit. Bernie E. LOOS, Plaintiff-Appellant, and 2649 35 5 W. Allen Overcash; Larry E. Stancil, Jr.; J. M. Stegall; Brian E. Voncannon; Hilton Grady Smith, Jr.; Jimmy A. Maner, Jr.; Ronald E. Barbee; Mark J. Davis; Tim R. Templeton; LLrry F. Ketchie; Joseph O'Donnell; Francis L. Bishop; Keith E. Cauthan; Scott Newell; Ramona O. Page; Douglas W. Small; Michael E. Wilson; Edward L. Clay, Jr.; Weldell B. Rummage; Derek G. Waller; Sidney B. Kluttz, II; Rick Smith; Donald A. Fraser; Richard H. Simpson; Ronald E. Green; Timothy B. Hartsell; Jeffrey D. Young; Tyler A. Gayan; Billy H. Swaringen; Joseph W. Flair; V. E. Nash; Michael P. Greene; Jeffrey L. Haynes; Michael L. Drake; A. D. Atwell; Leonard L. Lambert; Ricky L. Steele; Barry L. Nix; Carl L. Gadd; Lisa C. Hudson; T. M. Combs; Charles A. Herndon, Jr.; Denise S. Tran; Christopher Garifo, Plaintiffs, v. CITY OF CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA, Defendant-Appellee. Southern States Police Benevolent Association; North Carolina Police Benevolent Association, Amici Curiae. . Argued: |
| Court | United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (4th Circuit) |
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, at Salisbury. William L. Osteen, Sr., District Judge. (CA-91-631-4)
Louis L. Lesesne, Jr., LESESNE & CONNETTE, Charlotte, North Carolina, for Appellant.
David Betts Hamilton, PETREE, STOCKTON, Charlotte, North Carolina, for Appellee.
Penni P. Bradshaw, Louis W. Doherty, PETREE, STOCKTON, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, for Appellee.
J. Michael McGuinness, MCGUINNESS & PARLAGRECO, Salem, Massachusetts, for Amici Curiae.
Before WILKINS and LUTTIG, Circuit Judges, and PAYNE, United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Virginia, sitting by designation.
Bernie E. Loos sought, by motion for a mandatory preliminary injunction, to compel the City of Concord to reinstate him to his job as a police sergeant pending the outcome of the underlying litigation. The district court denied the motion, and Loos appeals.
On December 30, 1991, after an administrative hearing, the city discharged Loos for violating several police department and city regulations. In particular, during the pendency of the department's investigation of one of Loos' superior officers, Loos spoke to at least one newspaper reporter about the alleged wrongdoing by the officer, in violation of both department and city regulations. Although he told the reporter that the officer had written a letter of recommendation on behalf of a convicted felon, Loos later conceded that the letter was not a recommendation, that he "had no idea" whether the subject of the letter had ever been convicted of a felony, and that his statements were based simply on "general rumor mill." J.A. at 47-49. The officer was subsequently found to have done nothing improper. Also in violation of regulations, Loos was evasive and uncooperative during the investigation of his conduct. Loos has challenged his termination as retaliation for the exercise of his First Amendment rights.
Applying the preliminary injunction standard set forth in Blackwelder Furniture Co. v. Seilig Mfg. Co., 550 F.2d 189 (4th Cir. 1977), the district court found that Loos had shown neither irreparable injury nor a likelihood of success on the merits. Loos' claims of lost income and lost career opportunities, the court concluded, did not constitute irreparable injury. See Sampson v. Murray, 415 U.S. 61, 90-92 (1974). Nor, the court concluded, did Loos' claim of constitutional injury entitle him to the extraordinary relief requested. The district court...
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