Alburquerque v. Faz Alzamora, CIV.02-1081(HL).

• Decision Date: 09 December 2004
• Docket Number: No. CIV.02-1081(HL).,CIV.02-1081(HL).
• Citation: 357 F.Supp.2d 385
• Parties: Isabel ALBURQUERQUE, et al., Plaintiffs, v. Antonio FAZ ALZAMORA, et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Puerto Rico

Page 385

357 F.Supp.2d 385

Isabel ALBURQUERQUE, et al., Plaintiffs, v. Antonio FAZ ALZAMORA, et al., Defendants.

No. CIV.02-1081(HL).

United States District Court, D. Puerto Rico.

December 9, 2004.

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Antonio Borres-Otero, Esq., Fernando L. Gallardo, Esq., for Plaintiffs.

Alberto O. Jimenez-Santiago, Isabel Maria Rodriguez-Casellas, Juan R. Gonzalez-Munoz, Salvador J. Antonetti-Stutts, Yvonne M. Menendez-Calero, Vanesa Vicens, Marcos A. Ramirez-Lavandero, for Defendants.

OPINION AND ORDER

LAFFITTE, District Judge.

Before the Court is the United States Magistrate Judge's Report and Recommendation (" Report") (Docket No. 73) recommending that defendants' amended motion for summary judgment (Docket No. 42) be granted in part and denied in part. Also before the Court are defendants' objections to the Report (Docket No. 81); plaintiffs' objections to the Report (Docket No. 79); and plaintiffs' reply to defendants' objections (Docket No. 88). For the reasons stated below, the Court ADOPTS in part the Magistrate Judge's Report and Recommendation (Docket No. 73). Accordingly, defendants' amended motion for summary judgment is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part (Docket No. 42).

Plaintiffs bring this action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, claiming political discrimination in their employment in violation of the First, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution, as well as violations under state law. Defendants argue that plaintiffs' claims should be dismissed because plaintiffs have failed to establish a prima facie case of political discrimination, plaintiffs lack a due process entitlement in their employment, and defendants enjoy legislative and/or qualified immunity in their employment decisions as to plaintiffs.

STANDARD OF REVIEW

A district court, may on its own initiative, refer a pending matter to a United States Magistrate Judge for a report and recommendation. Fed.R.Civ.P. 72(b); D.P.R. R. 72. Under Rule 72(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the Court is obligated to make a "de novo determination ... of any portion of the magistrate judge's disposition to which specific written objection has been made in accordance with this rule." Fed.R.Civ.P. 72(b). The Court thereafter "may accept, reject, or modify, in whole or in part, the findings or recommendations made by the magistrate." Phinney v. Wentworth Douglas Hosp., 199 F.3d 1 (1st Cir.1999) (quoting 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(C)).

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

The facts leading up to the employment actions in question are undisputed. The Magistrate Judge aptly summarized these facts in her Report and Recommendation. (Docket No. 73 at 1-3.) In the 2000 general elections the Popular Democratic Party ("PDP") gained a majority in both houses of the Puerto Rico legislature. On January 2, 2001, in the interim before the newly elected President took charge, the Acting President Luis D. Pastrana Roman ordered a six (6) month renewal of all transitory employees' contracts that had expired on December 31, 2000. Defendant Antonio Faz Alzamora was elected President of the Senate on January 8, 2001. Defendant Faz Alzamaroa took office later that month and reversed the six-month renewals, allowing an extension of the transitory employees' contracts until only January 31, 2001. Thereafter, a reorganization of the various Senate offices was implemented, resulting in the creation of new offices, as well as a classification plan for administrative employees that entailed a description of duties and a uniform pay scale.

From January 2001 to June 2001, plaintiffs were all dismissed from their positions in Senate offices. Plaintiffs allege that they were dismissed because they are affiliated with the New Progressive Party ("NPP"). Plaintiffs filed the present case for monetary and injunctive relief, claiming political discrimination in their employment which caused violations to their federal constitutional and state rights. Plaintiffs bring this action against Antonio Faz Alzamora, President of the Senate of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; José A. Nazario Alvarez, Secretary of the Senate of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; and Luis D. Pastrana Roman, Director of the Office of Human Resources of the Senate of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Defendants filed an amended motion for summary judgment (Docket No. 42) claiming that the employment actions were not politically motivated, plaintiffs did not establish a prima facie case of political discrimination, plaintiffs had no due process entitlement in their employment, and defendants enjoy legislative and/or qualified immunity. This motion and its corresponding objections and replies were referred to a magistrate judge for report and recommendation. (Docket No. 66.)

The Magistrate Judge issued a Report and Recommendation recommending that defendants' amended motion for summary judgment be granted in part and denied in part. (Docket No. 73.) The Report recommends that all plaintiffs due process claims be dismissed on the grounds that all plaintiffs lacked a property interest in their positions. Id. at 14. The Report identifies ten¹ plaintiffs as employees who performed functions with meaningful input in the legislative process and for whom political affiliation was a proper employment requirement. Id. at 32. The Report recommends that defendants be afforded legislative and/or qualified immunity as to these ten plaintiffs. Id. The Report further recommends that summary judgment be denied as to the remaining plaintiffs' First Amendment claims. Id. at 33.

Defendants object to the Magistrate Judge's Report on the following grounds: (1) plaintiffs have not met their burden of establishing a prima facie case of political discrimination, (2) the Report does not include any recommendation regarding plaintiffs José Alicea Lugo, José Castro Lassus, and José Burgos, and (3) defendants are entitled to legislative or qualified immunity as to all plaintiffs. (Docket No. 81.) Plaintiffs have the following objections to the Report: (1) none of the plaintiffs' positions were at-will, (2) the due process analysis of the Report failed to address the plaintiffs that held permanent positions, (3) the positions classified as transitory had a due process interest in their continued employment, (4) plaintiffs' job descriptions are contested, so triable issues remain as to whether any employee held a position for which political affiliation was an appropriate job requirement. (Docket Nos. 79, 88.)

DISCUSSION

I. Summary Judgment Standard

Under Rule 56(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the Court will grant a motion for summary judgment "if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c). A genuine issue exists if there is sufficient evidence supporting the claimed factual dispute to require a choice between the parties' differing versions of the truth at trial. Morris v. Gov't Dev. Bank of Puerto Rico, 27 F.3d 746, 748 (1st Cir.1994); LeBlanc v. Great Am. Ins. Co., 6 F.3d 836, 841 (1st Cir.1993). A fact is material only if it "might affect the outcome of the suit under the governing law." Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2510, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). In determining if a material fact is "genuine" the Court does not weigh the facts but, instead, ascertains whether "the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party." Id.; see also Leary v. Dalton, 58 F.3d 748, 751 (1st Cir.1995).

To aid the Court in the task of identifying genuine issues of material fact in the record, the District for Puerto Rico has adopted Local Rule 56(b) (formerly Local Rule 311.12). D.P.R. R. 56(b). Local Rule 56(b) requires that a party moving for summary judgment submit, in support of the motion, "a separate, short, and concise statement of material facts as to which the moving party contends there is no genuine issue to be tried and the basis of such contention as to each material fact, properly supported by specific reference to the record." Id., Leary, 58 F.3d at 751. The Court will only consider the facts alleged in the parties' Local Rule 56 statements when entertaining the movant's arguments. Rivera v. Telefonica de Puerto Rico, 913 F.Supp. 81, 85 (D.P.R.1995).

Once a party moves for summary judgment, it bears the initial burden. Specifically, "`a party seeking summary judgment always bears the initial responsibility of informing the district court of the basis for its motion, and identifying those portions of the [evidence] ... which it believes demonstrate the absence of a genuine issue of material fact.'" Crawford-El v. Britton, 523 U.S. 574, 600 n. 22, 118 S.Ct. 1584, 1598 n. 22, 140 L.Ed.2d 759 (1998) (quoting Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2553, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986)). Once this threshold is met, the burden shifts to the nonmoving party. The nonmovant may not rest on mere conclusory allegations or wholesale denials. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(e); Libertad v. Welch, 53 F.3d 428, 435 (1st Cir.1995). Instead, the nonmoving party must "set forth specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial." Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(e). Furthermore, the nonmovant "must do more than simply show that there is some metaphysical doubt as to the material facts." Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 586, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 1356, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986).

II. Political Discrimination

To make a prima facie case of political discrimination a "plaintiff must show that [s/he] engaged in constitutionally protected conduct, and that this conduct was a substantial or motivating factor for the adverse employment decision." Padilla-Garcia v. Guillermo Rodriguez, 212 F.3d 69, 74 (1st...