Embrey v. Hampton, 71-2073.

Citation470 F.2d 146
Decision Date03 July 1972
Docket NumberNo. 71-2073.,71-2073.
PartiesEdwin W. EMBREY, Appellant, v. Robert E. HAMPTON, Chairman, United States Civil Service Commission and Winton M. Blount, Postmaster General, United States Post Office, Appellees.
CourtUnited States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (4th Circuit)

A. Andrew Giangreco, Alexandria, Va. (Giangreco, Seay & Manuel, Alexandria, Va., on brief), for appellant.

Stanton R. Koppel, Atty., Dept. of Justice (L. Patrick Gray, III, Asst. Atty. Gen., Morton Hollander, Atty., Dept. of Justice, and Brian P. Gettings, U. S. Atty., on brief), for appellees.

Before HAYNSWORTH, Chief Judge, and RUSSELL and FIELD, Circuit Judges.

PER CURIAM:

This appeal is from the decision of the District Court that Embrey's discharge from his position with the Post Office Department was lawful and not arbitrary, capricious nor an abuse of discretion.

Embrey, who had an exemplary record in his four years with the Navy and 21 years with the Post Office, was discharged because of a conviction for fraud. In an application for an F.H.A. loan at a time when his wife had been quite ill, Embrey had wrongfully claimed he had no other debts outstanding. Although he was found guilty of fraud, the District Court did not impose sentence, placing Embrey on probation for three years and noting that he was endeavoring to repay his debts in spite of a pending application for discharge in bankruptcy.

Embrey's position as Civil Service Examiner is one that requires trust but one in which he would be unlikely to handle money. Additionally, the record indicates that Embrey was not trying to obtain funds under false pretenses with the intention of not making repayment, the usual conception of fraud. It is therefore understandable that his direct supervisor refused to recommend discharge.

In view of the limited scope of judicial review of administrative decisions, we cannot say that the District Court erroneously concluded that Embrey's discharge was lawful. After the decision of the Regional Director of the Post Office that he should be discharged, Embrey was afforded a full administrative hearing de novo followed by a second evidentiary hearing before the Civil Service Commission Appeals Examining Office and then by an appeal to the Civil Service Board of Appeals and Review. These hearings satisfied all requirements of procedural due process.

Relying on the contract between his labor union and the Post Office Department which proscribes references to charges more than two years old, Embrey claims that he was discharged for acts committed beyond that period. The discharge, however, was properly based on the conviction, not the...

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8 cases
  • Gueory v. Hampton
    • United States
    • United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (District of Columbia)
    • April 3, 1975
    ...on his reliability, trustworthiness and ethical conduct, all of which naturally affect the efficiency of the service. See Embrey v. Hampton,470 F.2d 146 (4th Cir. 1972); Rodriguez v. Seamans, 150 U.S.App.D.C. 1, 463 F.2d 837, cert. denied, 409 U.S. 1094, 93 S.Ct. 704, 34 L.Ed.2d 664 In conc......
  • Marsden v. United States Postal Service, 4-74-Civ. 426.
    • United States
    • United States District Courts. 8th Circuit. United States District Court of Minnesota
    • October 17, 1974
    ...v. U. S. Civil Service Commission, 374 F.2d 466 (9th Cir. 1967); Finfer v. Caplin, 344 F.2d 38 (2nd Cir. 1965); but see Embrey v. Hampton, 470 F.2d 146 (4th Cir. 1972). Indeed, it is clearly within the hiring and firing power of the Postal Service to determine its own standards as to the qu......
  • Young v. Hampton
    • United States
    • United States District Courts. 7th Circuit. Southern District of Illinois
    • October 21, 1976
    ...cannot be disturbed by this court. The force of that principle is most forcefully exemplified by the decision in Embrey v. Hampton, 470 F.2d 146 (4th Cir. 1972). It is clear that the Court of Appeals was convinced that dismissal was not warranted in the factual context of that proceeding, y......
  • Abrams v. U.S. Dept. of the Navy
    • United States
    • United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (3rd Circuit)
    • September 6, 1983
    ...of which naturally affect the efficiency of the service." Gueory v. Hampton, 510 F.2d 1222, 1226 (D.C.Cir.1974), citing Embrey v. Hampton, 470 F.2d 146 (4th Cir.1972), and Rodriguez v. Seamans, 150 U.S.App.D.C. 1, 463 F.2d 837 (D.C.Cir.), cert. dismissed, 409 U.S. 1094, 93 S.Ct. 704, 34 L.E......
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