Alers v. City of Phila.

• Citation: 919 F.Supp.2d 528
• Decision Date: 24 January 2013
• Docket Number: Civil Action No. 08–4745.
• Parties: Miguel A. ALERS and Denise Szustowicz, Plaintiffs, v. CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Pennsylvania

919 F.Supp.2d 528

Miguel A. ALERS and Denise Szustowicz, Plaintiffs,

v.CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, et al., Defendants.

Civil Action No. 08–4745.

United States District Court,

E.D. Pennsylvania.

Jan. 24, 2013.

Brian M. Puricelli, Law Offices of Brian Puricelli, Newtown, PA, for Plaintiffs.

Shant H. Zakarian, Tracy Tripp, City of Philadelphia Law Department, Philadelphia, PA, for Defendants.

MEMORANDUM

JONES, II, District Judge.

In their Second Amended Complaint, Plaintiffs allege violations of (1) Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq. (“Title VII”); (2) 42 U.S.C. § 1983; (3) the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, 29 U.S.C. § 201 et seq. (“FLSA”); (4) the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, 43 P.S. § 955 et seq. (“PHRA”); and (5) the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act, 43 P.S. § 333 et seq. (“PMWA”). Plaintiffs also bring a state law claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress (“IIED”). ¹ Now before this Court is Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment (“Defs. Mot. Summ. J.”), including their Statement of Undisputed Material Facts (“Defs. SOF”) (Dkt. No. 62), as well as Plaintiffs' opposition brief (“Pls. Opp.”) and factual counterstatement (“Pls. SOF”) (Dkt. No. 68), Defendants' Reply (Dkt. No. 69), and Plaintiffs' Sur–Reply (Dkt. No. 73). For the reasons set forth below, Defendants' Motion will be GRANTED in part and DENIED in part.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

The Court recites the undisputed material facts as viewed in the light most favorable to Plaintiffs; while Plaintiffs assert a number of disputes of material fact, upon close examination, the Court does not find such to exist in most of the cited instances. Nevertheless, where Plaintiffs have claimed that a particular material fact is indeed in genuine dispute, the Court will address such assertion. If the Court does not discuss a fact at all, it is because the Court has concluded that such fact is irrelevant or immaterial and thus not worthy of discussion.

A. PLAINTIFF ALERS

Plaintiff Miguel A. Alers, a Hispanic male, serves the City of Philadelphia as a police detective. Defendants Commissioner Charles Ramsey, Deputy Commissioner Jack Gaittens, Inspector Christopher Flacco, Captain Carol Abrams, Captain Sharon Seaborough, Sergeant Mark Jones, Detective Thomas Hood, and Detective Robert Kerwin are also employees of the City of Philadelphia Police Department (“PPD”). Defendant Lieutenant Robert Brown was an employee of PPD until his retirement in 2010.² The City of Philadelphia itself is also named as a Defendant.

On or about October 9 and 10, 2005, Alers was assigned to the Central Detectives Unit (“CDU”), where he was the only Hispanic employee working his designated shift. (Defs. SOF ¶ 13.) In what seem to have been characterized as pranks, Kerwin and Hood turned Alers' desk around and raised it up on milk crates, elevated his desk chair on a phone book, and moved his coat hook higher up on the office wall. (Defs. SOF ¶¶ 28–29.) They also glued coins and a battery to Alers' desk. (Defs. SOF ¶ 30.) Alers asked Kerwin and Hood to stop. (Defs. SOF ¶ 31.) Alers reported the conduct to Seaborough, who took no action. (Defs. ¶ 41.) Alers also reported to Brown and Seaborough that his handgun was missing and had been taken from his desk. (Pls. SOF ¶ 46.) While Alers was initially charged by Seaborough with violating the PPD's disciplinary code relating to negligent care of Department property by failing to secure his handgun adequately, Ramsey ultimately withdrew the charge. (Defs. SOF ¶ 51.)

Thereafter, Alers claims he was denied several overtime opportunities made available to his peers, and his compensation for approved overtime was initially delayed. (Pls. SOF ¶ 59.) ³ On November 26, 2006, Alers filed a complaint of discrimination with the PPD Equal Employment Opportunity (“EEO”) Unit. (Defs. SOF ¶ 71.) Following his EEO discrimination complaint, he was reprimanded for entering his own vacation time, although he had never been reprimanded for doing so prior to filing his complaint. (Pls. SOF ¶ 60.) On January 7, 2007, he filed a complaint of discrimination and retaliation with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”). (Defs. SOF ¶ 71.) ⁴ Alers requested a transfer from the CDU on November 1, 2007. (Defs. SOF ¶ 65.)

B. PLAINTIFF SZUSTOWICZ

Plaintiff Denise Szustowicz (“Szustowicz”), a white Polish female, is also a PPD detective, and has twice been named the Department's “Detective of the Year.” (Pls. SOF ¶ Szustowicz 1b.) In July 2006, Szustowicz reported witnessing illegal misconduct by Brown and Seaborough, namely theft, gambling on duty, and tampering with evidence, which she reported to the PPD's internal anti-corruption investigation team. (Defs. SOF ¶¶ 75–76.) Szustowicz was interviewed in connection with Alers' EEOC complaint on January 23, 2007. (Defs. SOF ¶ 84.)

On August 15, 2007, Szustowicz was charged with conduct unbecoming an officer relating to several incidents in which Szustowicz allegedly engaged in racist conduct. (Defs. SOF ¶ 85.) Szustowicz subsequently requested and was granted a transfer out of the CDU, as she declined to work on a particular assignment, and with an officer to whom she was assigned. (Defs. SOF ¶ 87; Pls. SOF ¶ 106.) On January 24, 2008, the PPD's Police Board of Inquiry conducted a hearing relating to the charges brought against Szustowicz. (Pls. SOF ¶ 91.) While represented by her current counsel, Szustowicz pled guilty to two charges and a third was withdrawn; she contends that she was pressured into pleading guilty and denied the opportunity to prepare fully for the hearing. (Defs. SOF ¶ 91; Pls. SOF ¶ 94.) Szustowicz was ultimately suspended for 21 days. (Defs. SOF ¶ 92.) The penalties were imposed by Flacco, Gaitens and Ramsey. (Defs. ¶ 92.) ⁵

II. LEGAL STANDARD

Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56(c), summary judgment is appropriate “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 a judgment as a matter of law.” Fed.R. Civ. P. 56(c); Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). To defeat a motion for summary judgment, disputes must be both (1) material, meaning concerning facts that will affect the outcome of the issue under substantive law; and (2) genuine, meaning the evidence must be “such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party.” Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). Summary judgment is mandated “against a party who fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the existence of an element essential to that party's case, and on which that party will bear the burden of proof at trial.” Celotex, 477 U.S. at 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548. An issue is genuine if the fact finder could reasonably return a verdict in favor of the nonmoving party with respect to that issue. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 249, 106 S.Ct. 2505. In reviewing a motion for summary judgment, the court does not make credibility determinations and “must view facts and inferences in the light most favorable to the party opposing the motion.” Siegel Transfer, Inc. v. Carrier Express, Inc., 54 F.3d 1125, 1127 (3d Cir.1995).

III. DISCUSSION

For purposes of clarity, the Court addresses Plaintiffs' claims in the order that they appear in the Plaintiffs' Second Amended Complaint.

A. COUNT I: TITLE VII RACIAL DISCRIMINATION (PLAINTIFFS V. CITY OF PHILADELPHIA)

1. Legal Context

Title VII's anti-discrimination provision makes it unlawful for an employer to discriminate against any individual with respect to “compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment” or to “deprive any individual of employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affect his status as an employee” because of such individual's race. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e–2(a). To prevail under Title VII, the plaintiff's claims must meet the burden-shifting allocation and order of proof set forth in McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green, 411 U.S. 792, 802, 93 S.Ct. 1817, 36 L.Ed.2d 668 (1972). See St. Mary's Honor Ctr. v. Hicks, 509 U.S. 502, 506–07, 113 S.Ct. 2742, 125 L.Ed.2d 407 (1993); Texas Dept. of Cmty. Affairs v. Burdine, 450 U.S. 248, 252–53, 101 S.Ct. 1089, 67 L.Ed.2d 207 (1981). The plaintiff carries the initial burden of establishing a prima facie case of racial discrimination by a preponderance of the evidence. Hicks, 509 U.S. at 506, 113 S.Ct. 2742. Should the plaintiff succeed in proving racial discrimination, the burden of evidence production shifts to the defendant to articulate some legitimate, nondiscriminatory purpose for its adverse employment actions. Id. at 506–07, 113 S.Ct. 2742. If the defendant carries this burden, the plaintiff must then prove that the defendant's proffered reasons for the actions taken were not its true reasons, but rather were pretext for the defendant's discriminatory purpose. Id.

The “ultimate burden of persuading the trier of facts” rests at all times with the plaintiff. Burdine, 450 U.S. at 253, 101 S.Ct. 1089. To survive a motion for summary judgment where the defendant-employer has met its evidentiary burden of articulating a legitimate, nondiscriminatory purpose for its actions, the plaintiff must provide direct or circumstantial evidence of pretext with sufficient probative force from which the fact finder could reasonably either “(1) disbelieve the employer's articulated legitimate reasons; or (2) believe that an invidious discriminatory reason was more likely than not a motivating or determinative cause of the employer's action.” Simpson v. Kay Jewelers, Div. of Sterling, Inc., 142 F.3d 639, 644–45 (3d Cir.1998).

Actions that violate Title VII may be overt or facially neutral. Cardenas v. Massey, 269 F.3d 251, 261 (3d Cir.2001). Facially neutral conduct need not be accompanied by overt racial harassment to...