Edwards v. U.S. E.P.A.

• Decision Date: 18 October 2006
• Docket Number: Civil Action No. 05-0426 (JDB).
• Parties: Jason M. EDWARDS, Plaintiff, v. U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Columbia

456 F.Supp.2d 72

Jason M. EDWARDS, Plaintiff, v. U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, Defendant.

Civil Action No. 05-0426 (JDB).

United States District Court, District of Columbia.

October 18, 2006.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

H. Vincent Mcknight, Jr., Ashcraft & Gerel, Washington, DC, for Plaintiff.

Mercedeh Momeni, U.S. Attorney's Office, Washington, DC, for Defendant.

MEMORANDUM OPINION

BATES, District Judge.

Plaintiff Jason M. Edwards brings this employment-discrimination suit against defendant the United States Environmental Protection Agency ("defendant," "EPA," or "Agency"). Edwards, who is Native American and African American, alleges that EPA violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq., by discriminating against him on the basis of race, retaliating against him, and subjecting him to a hostile work environment, and also discriminated against him on the basis of disability in violation of the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. § 791 et seq.,¹ by denying his requests for reasonable accommodation. Presently before the Court is defendant's motion for summary judgment. For the reasons set forth below, the Court will grant the motion and enter judgment in defendant's favor.

BACKGROUND

The pertinent facts, which are largely undisputed,² chronicle plaintiff's tumultuous relationship with his supervisor in the National Center for Environmental Research ("NCER"), an office within EPA's Office of Research and Development ("ORD"). Plaintiff, who identifies himself as Native American and African American, suffers from a variety of medical ailments. Compl. at 2, ¶ 3. Specifically, he remains partially paralyzed from a stroke that he suffered prior to working at EPA, and also suffers from Crohn's disease/colitis, "a malady of the small intestine that can cause periodic episodes of obstruction and acute abdominal pain," United States v. Martin, 363 F.3d 25, 49 (1st Cir.2004), and that is exacerbated by stress and fatigue. Compl. at 11, ¶ 16; Def.'s Exh. 11 (Sept. 18, 2001 Mem. to Clark). In addition to the limitations on his mobility caused by the paralysis, he claims that his intestinal disorder—and the accompanying medication—has led to bursitis, arthritis, joint pain, and diminished eyesight. Id.

Plaintiff worked as a Program Analyst in the Environmental Sciences Research Division ("ESRD") of NCER. Def.'s Stmt. at 4, ¶¶ 1-3. In that position, he managed research grant and fellowship programs, conducted occasional site visits, and served for a period as Special Emphasis Project Manager and Tribal Program Coordinator. Compl. at 5-6, ¶ 14; Pl.'s Exh. 8 at 249 (First Record of Investigation). His supervisor early in his tenure at EPA was David Kleffman. Def.'s Stmt. at 4, ¶ 5. According to plaintiff, Kleffman allowed him to work from home when weather conditions made it difficult for him to commute to work. Def.'s Exh. 17 at 138 (Edwards 2005 Depo.); Def.'s Exh. 38 at 3, ¶ 15 (Levinson Decl.). Kleffman's successor, Barbara Levinson, continued this informal arrangement, though the practice was never memorialized in writing. Def.'s Exh. 17 at 138; Def.'s Exh. 38 at 3, ¶ 15.

While Kleffman was still his supervisor, plaintiff filed his first EEO complaint with EPA's Office of Civil Rights in March of 1999. Plaintiff alleged that Kleffman had retaliated against him by refusing to promote him to GS-9 and refusing to convert him from noncompetitive status to fulltime, competitive status, which would have allowed him further career advancement. Def.'s Ex. 5 at 2-3. This complaint was resolved by a settlement agreement in June 2001, in which EPA agreed, among other things, to pay plaintiff a designated amount and to consider him for a promotion to GS-11. See Defs Stmt. at 5 n. 2.

Rebecca Clark became Acting Director of ESRD, and plaintiffs supervisor, shortly after the settlement agreement had been signed. Def.'s Stmt. at 4, ¶ 4. She had an introductory meeting with plaintiff on July 31, 2001. Compl. at 14, ¶ 14. During the meeting, which he described as "cordial," Def.'s Exh. 17 at 71, plaintiff informed Clark about the settlement agreement and his expectation that he would be transferred out of NCER in the near future. Def.'s Stmt. at 9, ¶ 31; Pl.'s Exh. 8 at 249. Plaintiff expressed his willingness "to pull [his] own weight" while still in the division, but "made it clear" to Clark that his "first priority was to secure . . . employment elsewhere." Def.'s Exh. 17 at 72; Def.'s Exh. 3 at 124 (Clark 2005 Depo.). Clark captured these representations in her handwritten notes from the meeting, where she indicated, among other things, plaintiffs desire to relocate to Ohio, his "reluctance" to be assigned "new tasks," his willingness to provide "some help with other things," and that he had an economics degree. Pl.'s Exh. 8 at 249. After this "cordial" introductory meeting, however, plaintiffs relationship with Clark deteriorated rapidly, leading to the series of events that comprise the basis for this lawsuit. Those events can be divided into three categories: (1) plaintiffs workload and opportunity for training; (2) the Agency's alleged failure to provide plaintiff with reasonable accommodations for his disability; and (3) a number of actions that Clark allegedly took in retaliation for plaintiffs filing of an EEO complaint.

1. Work and Training Opportunities under Clark

Plaintiff alleges in his complaint that his duties were reduced after he filed his first EEO complaint in the spring of 1999. Between that time and his transfer in 2003, he says, no major projects were assigned to him, and his workload dropped by 60%. Compl. at 4-5. In addition, supervisors prevented him from conducting unsupervised site visits and stripped him of his responsibilities as Tribal Program Coordinator and Special Emphasis Project Manager in July and September 2000, respectively. Id. Although acknowledging that this reduction in responsibilities took place before Clark's tenure as Acting Division Director, plaintiff insists that the trend persisted under Clark's leadership in so far as the management of new grant recipients continued to be assigned to others. Pl.'s Stmt. at 14.

Clark did, however, assign plaintiff a task outside the scope of his other day-to-day duties. Seizing on plaintiffs background in economics, Clark called several colleagues, including her husband, Dr. Matthew Clark, to ask whether they had any economics-related work that plaintiff could perform. Def.'s Exh. 3 at 124-25. Dr. Clark, an economist in another division of EPA, agreed to provide an assignment. He asked plaintiff in late July 2001 to conduct a literature search in connection with a report being prepared by his office. Def.'s Exh. 19 at 24-25 (Dr. Clark 2004 Depo.); Def.'s Exh. 3 at 138-39.

On Sunday, October 21, 2001, plaintiff sent Clark an e-mail message informing her that his grandfather had passed away and that he would be missing work to attend the funeral in Cleveland. Def.'s Exh. 21 (Oct. 21, 2001 E-mail to Clark). That same evening, he left a draft of the assigned literature search on the chair of Dr. Clark, purportedly with a note in which he told Dr. Clark that he would be leaving for a funeral and asked to discuss his work product upon his return. Compl. at 9; Pl.'s Exh. 2 at 84-85 (Edwards 2006 Depo.). The draft consisted of what Dr. Clark described as "a printout of a single online search that may have taken 15 minutes or half an hour." Pl.'s Exh. 4 at 37. Dr. Clark then reported to his wife that the work performed by plaintiff "was not adequate." Def.'s Exh. 3 at 128.

During the period when he was supposedly working on the bibliography for Dr. Clark, plaintiff also sought out multiple offsite training opportunities. Def.'s Stmt. at 8, ¶ 25. In September 2001, for instance, Rebecca Clark authorized plaintiff to attend Applied Clear Air Act training in South Carolina. See id.; Def.'s Exh. 17 at 92. Plaintiff later sought permission— first verbally and then in writing—to attend an American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) conference that was to be held Albuquerque, New Mexico in November 2001. Def.'s Stmt. at 8, ¶ 26; Def.'s Exh. 18. In plaintiffs view, attending the AISES conference was important to his "efforts to secure other employment" because the conference included a "fairly large career fair" that featured recruiters from both government agencies and the private sector. Def.'s Exh. 17 at 98-99. Clark did not permit plaintiff to attend the conference. Def.'s Stmt. at 9, ¶ 28. Between August 1, 2001 and April 30, 2002, she also declined to authorize out-of-town training for nine other employees, two of whom were African American. Def.'s Exh. 20 (Denied Requests for Training and/or Travel).

2. EPA's Alleged Failure to Accommodate

In August 2001, plaintiff verbally requested permission to bring his 10-week-old puppy to the office. Plaintiff told Clark that his doctor had recommended that he bring the dog to work to ameliorate work-related stress. Def.'s Stmt. at 5, ¶ 12. Clark had discussions with other EPA personnel and with plaintiff, eventually inquiring whether the dog had been trained or had been certified as a service animal. Def.'s Exh. 10 (Timeline of Events). She then requested that plaintiff submit medical documentation and information on the dog's training. See id. Plaintiff responded by submitting a memorandum detailing his medical condition and a note from his doctor, Kevin Geraci. Def.'s Stmt. at 6, ¶¶ 13-14. Geraci disclaimed expertise on the concrete benefits that the dog could confer, emphasizing that "[t]he need for the dog is beyond the realm of [his] discussion here," but also expressed support for what he described "as a holistic and experimental approach." Def.'s Exh. 15 (Nov. 16, 2001 Mem.); Pl.'s Stmt. at 5-6. Dr. Geraci concluded, "I would say `go for it!' It certainly cannot hurt."...