Loudermill v. Cleveland Bd. of Educ.
| Decision Date | 17 November 1983 |
| Docket Number | Nos. 82-3227,82-3226,s. 82-3227 |
| Citation | 721 F.2d 550 |
| Parties | 14 Ed. Law Rep. 903 James LOUDERMILL, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. CLEVELAND BOARD OF EDUCATION, et al., Defendants-Appellees. Richard DONNELLY, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. PARMA BOARD OF EDUCATION, et al., Defendants-Appellees. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Sixth Circuit |
John W. Hickey (Lead Counsel), Robert M. Fertel (argued), Hickey Legal Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, for plaintiff-appellant in both cases.
William J. Brown, Atty. Gen. of Ohio, Columbus, Ohio, James G. Wyman (argued), D. John Travis, Stuart A. Friedman (argued), James E. Young, Cleveland, for defendants-appellees in No. 82-3227.
John T. Meredith (argued), Squire, Sanders & Dempsey, Stanley Keller, William Scully (argued), Keller & Scully, James E. Young, Stuart A. Friedman, Cleveland, Ohio, for defendants-appellees in No. 82-3226.
Before MERRITT, WELLFORD and TIMBERS, * Circuit Judges.
Appellants James Loudermill and Richard Donnelly, both classified civil service employees under Ohio Rev.Code Ann. Sec. 124.34 (Page 1978), commenced the instant civil rights actions after being discharged by their municipal employers. 1 In challenging the propriety of their respective discharges, the two employees alleged that their employers' failure to afford them an opportunity before dismissal to present evidence on their own behalf, as well as a prompt post-termination hearing, violated their rights to procedural due process under the Fourteenth Amendment. The District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, John M. Manos, District Judge, held that neither Fourteenth Amendment allegation raised a cognizable claim, i.e., that no pre-termination process was due and that the delay in the post-termination hearings was not excessive. Appellees urge that we affirm on the basis of the district court's analysis. Alternatively, appellee Cleveland Civil Service Commission urges us not to reach the merits of Loudermill's claim because of his failure to exhaust state remedies, and appellee Parma Civil Service Commission urges that Donnelly's action is barred by res judicata.
For the reasons stated below, we hold that the exhaustion and res judicata claims do not preclude us from reaching the merits of these appeals. With respect to the post-termination due process claims, we agree with the district court that the delays in granting the post-termination hearings did not rise to constitutional violations. With respect to the pre-termination due process claims, however, we hold that, because of the statutory protections afforded civil service employees under Sec. 124.34, a municipality must provide its employees some opportunity to present evidence on their own behalf prior to discharge. Accordingly, we affirm in part, and vacate and remand in part for further proceedings.
LOUDERMILL ACTION (No. 82-3227)
Loudermill was employed as a security guard by a private firm that supplied guards to the Cleveland Board of Education. After the private firm declared bankruptcy in 1979, many of the guards, including Loudermill, applied for similar positions with the Board of Education. As part of the application, applicants were asked, "Have you ever been convicted of a crime (felony)?" Loudermill responded "No". At the end of his application, he signed the following certification:
"I certify that all the statements made by me in this application are true, complete and correct to the best of my knowledge and that I am aware that any false statements will be sufficient cause for dismissal from or refusal of an appointment for any position with the Cleveland Board of Education."
The Board of Education accepted Loudermill's application on September 25, 1979. He commenced work immediately thereafter. As a classified civil service employee under Sec. 124.34, he could be discharged only for "cause". In the event of discharge, the statute required that a trial board be appointed to hear any appeal within thirty days. 2 After a year of employment, the Board of Education transferred Loudermill to a position with the newly created Department of Safety and Security. A routine examination of all transferees' employment records revealed that Loudermill had been convicted of a felony in 1968.
By a letter dated November 3, 1980, the Business Manager of the Board of Education advised Loudermill that he was being dismissed. The letter explained that the discharge stemmed from his dishonesty in filling out the employment application. He claims that, if he had been afforded an opportunity to respond to the charges before dismissal, he could have presented a meritorious defense to demonstrate his honesty, namely, that, because of the particular circumstances surrounding his 1968 conviction, he believed that he had been adjudged guilty of a misdemeanor rather than a felony.
Loudermill filed a notice of appeal with the Cleveland Civil Service Commission on November 12, 1980. The next day, the Board of Education adopted a resolution officially approving his discharge.
In late January 1981, Loudermill appeared for a hearing before the Cleveland Civil Service Commission. A referee appointed by the Commission, in a report filed April 1, 1981, recommended that Loudermill be reinstated. Without further testimony, the Civil Service Commission rejected the referee's recommendation on July 20, 1981, and affirmed Loudermill's discharge.
In October 1981, Loudermill commenced the instant action under 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983 (1976 & Supp. IV 1980), seeking monetary, injunctive, and declaratory relief. He alleged that appellees' failure to afford him a pre-termination hearing or an opportunity to respond to the dishonesty charge violated his due process rights to liberty and property. He sought damages and a declaration that Sec. 124.34 was constitutionally invalid for failing to provide an opportunity for classified civil service employees to respond to charges prior to removal. Further, Loudermill alleged that the inordinate delay before his post-termination hearing likewise violated his due process rights. Finally, he sought a mandatory injunction ordering his reinstatement with full backpay.
The district court dismissed Loudermill's action for failure to state a claim upon which relief could be granted. It held that, while Loudermill, under Sec. 124.34, enjoyed a cognizable property interest in continuing employment, due process did not require a pre-termination hearing. The court also held that, since the delay in granting the post-termination hearing was not excessive, the Civil Service Commission's conduct did not violate due process. The court denied a subsequent motion to alter or amend the judgment.
DONNELLY ACTION (No. 82-3226)
Donnelly was employed as a bus mechanic by the Parma Board of Education. He enjoyed the same status as Loudermill under Ohio law, i.e., he was a classified civil service employee who could be terminated only for cause under Sec. 124.34. The Board discharged Donnelly on August 17, 1977 because of his failure to pass an eye examination. The Board previously afforded Donnelly an opportunity to retake the eye examination, but it had not provided him with an opportunity to challenge the discharge. Donnelly claims that, if he had been afforded an opportunity to inform the Board that it still employed another bus mechanic who had failed the eye examination, the Board might have reevaluated the efficacy of the eye examination requirement, have scrutinized more closely the purported reasons for discharging Donnelly, and might not have proceeded with the discharge.
Donnelly filed a notice of appeal with the Parma Civil Service Commission on August 31, 1977. The Commission declined to hold a hearing on the ground that the appeal was untimely, the notice of appeal not having been filed within the ten day period prescribed by Sec. 124.34. Note 2 supra. Donnelly argued that the statutory period under Ohio law did not begin to run until the Commission actually received the termination notice (September 9, 1977). Donnelly commenced an action seeking a writ of mandamus in the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas to compel the Commission to commence the hearing. On May 9, 1978, the parties agreed to a writ of mandamus requiring that the Commission hold a hearing within the ensuing thirty day period. After a full evidentiary hearing held on May 30, 1978, the Commission ordered Donnelly reinstated, but made no provision for the award of backpay. 3
Rather than filing an appeal pursuant to Sec. 124.34, Donnelly commenced an action in the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas seeking damages and backpay from the effective date of his discharge to the time of the Commission's reinstatement order. Donnelly predicated the action on state law claims and alleged deprivation of Fourteenth Amendment rights.
Without opinion, the Court of Common Pleas dismissed the complaint on February 2, 1979. The Cuyahoga County Court of Appeals affirmed on February 22, 1980, on the ground that Donnelly had failed to file an appeal from the Commission's decision in the manner prescribed by Sec. 124.34. Donnelly's petition to the Ohio Supreme Court for review was denied on September 26, 1980.
More than a year later, on October 27, 1981, Donnelly commenced the instant action, alleging denial of due process and equal protection guaranteed under the Fourteenth Amendment. 4 The district court dismissed the complaint sua sponte, holding that, pursuant to its opinion in Loudermill, Donnelly had not stated a claim upon which relief could be granted. Donnelly filed a timely notice of appeal. His appeal was consolidated with that in Loudermill for the purposes of oral argument and this opinion.
We turn first to the question whether appellants' failure to exhaust state judicial remedies requires us to dismiss their procedural due process claims. Neither Loudermill nor Donnelly followed the procedure...
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