Jane Doe v. City of Mansfield

Decision Date27 December 2021
Docket NumberCase No. 1:19-cv-02901
Citation577 F.Supp.3d 651
Parties Jane DOE, et al., Plaintiffs, v. CITY OF MANSFIELD, et al., Defendants.
CourtU.S. District Court — Northern District of Ohio

K. Ann Zimmerman, Vasvari & Zimmerman, Raymond V. Vasvari , Jr., Law Office of Raymond V. Vasvari, Jr., Shaker Heights, OH, for Plaintiffs.

Andrea K. Ziarko, Gregory A. Beck, Baker, Dublikar, Beck, Wiley & Mathews, North Canton, OH, for Defendant City of Mansfield.

Brian R. Noethlich, Barkan Meizlish DeRose, D. Patrick Kasson, Reminger Co., Columbus, OH, for Defendant Freeman Nixon.

OPINION AND ORDER

J. Philip Calabrese, United States District Judge This case presents close and difficult questions arising from a workplace dispute in a police department between a supervisor and her subordinate that escalated to the point where a public records request resulted in the disclosure of deeply personal and embarrassing information about the supervisor's childhood sexual history, leading to serious trauma and injury. Plaintiffs Jane Doe and her husband John Doe claim Defendants the City of Mansfield; David Remy, the City's Human Resources Director; and Freeman Nixon, a police officer in the Mansfield Police Department, violated her rights protected by the federal Constitution and State law by publicly disclosing that information about her sexual history. The parties move for summary judgment on their respective claims and defenses.

One difficulty in this case arises from the competing standards the Ohio Supreme Court and the Sixth Circuit use to evaluate the parties’ respective claims and defenses. In cases such as this, which may be somewhat unusual, those differing standards will place officials in a difficult position—between the Scylla of State public records law and the Charybdis of constitutional federal privacy rights. Ultimately, the Ohio Supreme Court and the Sixth Circuit might need to settle on a common standard to govern primary conduct going forward (the Ohio Supreme Court adopted its standard after the events at issue). But that task does not fall to the Court in this case. Instead, the Court must follow Sixth Circuit precedent on matters of federal law and the Ohio Supreme Court on State law, wherever they lead. For that reason, and those that follow, the Court DENIES Plaintiff's motion for partial summary judgment (ECF No. 43; ECF No. 57); GRANTS IN PART AND DENIES IN PART the City's and Mr. Remy's motion for summary judgment (ECF No. 49); and GRANTS IN PART AND DENIES IN PART Officer Nixon's motion for summary judgment (ECF No. 50; ECF No. 51).

Also before the Court is the City of Mansfield's and Mr. Remy's motion for judgment on the pleadings. Previously, the Court ordered that their motion for judgment on the pleadings be fully incorporated into their motion for summary judgment. (Minute Entry, Jan. 28, 2021.) Accordingly, the Court DENIES AS MOOT the motion for judgment on the pleadings (ECF No. 32).

STATEMENT OF FACTS

The parties largely agree on the following events. Defendant Freeman Nixon has been employed by the Mansfield Police Department for about five and a half years as a patrol officer. (ECF No. 47, PageID #379; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #542.) Officer Nixon has known Plaintiff Jane Doe since he started working there. (ECF No. 47, PageID #380; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #543; ECF No. 43-2, PageID #277.) At some point, Ms. Doe became a sergeant and was Officer Nixon's supervisor. (Id. ) The two had a difficult relationship. (ECF No. 43-2, PageID #278–79, #281; ECF No. 57-2, PageID #693–94.)

As his supervisor, Sgt. Doe approached Officer Nixon "with a picture of [him] on her cell phone with a penis drawn on it, made some comments and then went on her way." (ECF No. 47, PageID #381; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #544; ECF No. 43-2, PageID #279; ECF No. 57-2, PageID #693; see also ECF No. 46, PageID #362–63 ("[T]hey had drawn a humongous penis just over his ... body."); ECF No. 51-2, PageID #526.) The picture was part of a group text in which Officer Nixon was not included. (ECF No. 47, PageID #381; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #544; ECF No. 46, PageID #362; ECF No. 51-2, PageID #525.) He does not recall what remark Sgt. Doe made when she showed him the photo, but testified that she brought it to him in "a joking manner" rather than in a manner of concern. (ECF No. 47, PageID #382; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #545.) Sgt. Doe testified that they both laughed over the photo and that Officer Nixon claimed whoever sent it was "just jealous." (ECF No. 46, PageID #363; ECF No. 51-2, PageID #526.) Officer Nixon did not immediately report the incident to a supervisor out of "fear of retaliation." (ECF No. 47, PageID #382; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #545.) Sgt. Doe testified that she was reprimanded for not sending the photo up the chain of command. (ECF No. 46, PageID #363; ECF No. 51-2, PageID #526.)

A couple months later, in June 2018, Officer Nixon and Sgt. Doe had another incident at work in which she wrote up Officer Nixon for insubordination after he used department resources to wash his car, allegedly in violation of a direct order from Sgt. Doe. (ECF No. 47, PageID #383; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #546; ECF No. 43-2, PageID #281; ECF No. 57-2, PageID #694.) The charged offense was cause for termination, so Officer Nixon figured reporting the earlier incident regarding the altered photograph "wasn't going to stop what she was already doing to me." (ECF No. 47, PageID #384; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #547; ECF No. 43-2, PageID #281; ECF No. 57-2, PageID #694.) Officer Nixon avers that Sgt. Doe lied about the car washing offense and was upset that he "could have been fired for something [he] didn't do." (ECF No. 47, PageID #385; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #548; ECF No. 43-2, PageID #282; ECF No. 57-2, PageID #695.) The offense was eventually lowered to misuse of public property. (ECF No. 47, PageID #385; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #548.)

A. The Public Records Request

After reporting the earlier incident involving the photograph, Officer Nixon was not informed how it was resolved or whether Sgt. Doe had been disciplined in connection with it, so he made a public records request for his personnel file and Sgt. Doe's. (ECF No. 43-5, PageID #342; ECF No. 57-5, PageID #766; ECF No. 47, PageID #386 & #394; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #549 & #557; ECF No. 43-2, PageID #283; ECF No. 57-2, PageID #696.) He also requested his file to verify its accuracy. (ECF No. 47, PageID #394; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #557.) He made both requests on December 10, 2018. (ECF No. 43-5, PageID #342; ECF No. 57-5, PageID #766; ECF No. 48, PageID #410, 422; ECF No. 51-4, PageID #573.)

The public records request went to Defendant David Remy, who is a lawyer admitted to practice in the State of Ohio. (ECF No. 43-3, PageID #304.) He was the Human Resource Director for the City of Mansfield from December 2011 to December 2018. (Id. ) Before that, from 2001 to November 2011, he was the City Law Director. (Id. ) And before that, starting in 1993, he worked as the chief prosecutor for the City. (Id. ) Mr. Remy testified that, when one employee requests another employee's personnel file, the human resources department undertakes a review and redaction process, pursuant to City policy. (ECF No. 43-3, PageID #305; ECF No. 57-3, PageID #721.) He reviewed all requests for personnel files that came to the office and personally determined whether redactions were appropriate in his capacity as human resources director. (ECF No. 43-3, PageID #306; ECF No. 48, PageID #411; ECF No. 51-4, PageID #574.)

One document contained in Sgt. Doe's file was the result of a polygraph interview from a prior job application to the Ohio State Highway Patrol. (ECF No. 47, PageID #386–87; ECF No. 43-2, PageID #283–84.) That document contained details about abuse in her relationship with her former fiancé; a suspension from college due to low grades; and traffic citations omitted from her employment application. (ECF No. 43-6, PageID #344.) It also contained the disclosure at issue (ECF No. 47, PageID #387–88; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #549–50; ECF No. 43-2, PageID #285; ECF No. 57-2, PageID #698; ECF No. 43-6, PageID #344; ECF No. 57-6, PageID #768; ECF No. 46, PageID #376; ECF No. 51-2, PageID #539) and was placed in Sgt. Doe's personnel file as part of an investigative packet the police department collects when it hires someone (ECF No. 43-3, PageID #308; ECF No. 57-3, PageID #724).

Mr. Remy did not consult with anyone while reviewing Ms. Doe's file to respond to Officer Nixon's request. (ECF No. 43-3, PageID #306; ECF No. 48, PageID #411; ECF No. 51-4, PageID #574.) Sometimes, if an unusual situation came up, he consulted the Law Department, though he did not do so here. (ECF No. 43-3, PageID #306, 311–12; ECF No. 57-3, PageID #728–79; ECF No. 48, PageID #411; ECF No. 51-4, PageID #574.)

B. The Disclosure at Issue

Mr. Remy fulfilled Officer Nixon's request by December 17, 2018, a week after Officer Nixon made the request. (ECF No. 48, PageID #410, #423; ECF No. 51-4, PageID #573, #586.) Officer Nixon retrieved both files and reviewed their contents. (ECF No. 47, PageID #386; ECF No. 51-3, PageID #549; ECF No. 43-2, PageID #283; ECF No. 57-2, PageID #696; ECF No. 48, PageID #413; ECF No. 51-4, PageID #576.) Sgt. Doe's personnel file contained the following statement regarding her sexual history when she was a minor:

Between the ages of 7 and 18, [Redacted].

(ECF No. 43-6, PageID #344; ECF No. 57-6, PageID #768.) According to Sgt. Doe, this behavior resulted from sexual abuse, though she concedes that a reader of that information from the polygraph might not have known as much and that she never told anyone about prior sexual abuse. (ECF No. 43-4, PageID #326; ECF No. 57-4, PageID #746.)

When reviewing Sgt. Doe's file, Mr. Remy read this information. (ECF No. 43-3, PageID #309; ECF No. 57-3, PageID #726.) He viewed it as "an unflattering incident in [Sgt. Doe's] life" (id. ) that occurred when she was a minor (ECF No. 43-3, PageID #311; ECF No. 57-3, PageID...

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