Ratliff v. City of Milwaukee

• Decision Date: 09 May 1985
• Docket Number: No. 81-C-1407.,81-C-1407.
• Citation: 608 F. Supp. 1109
• Parties: Beverly RATLIFF, Plaintiff, v. The CITY OF MILWAUKEE, Harold A. Breier, individually and in his official capacity as the Chief of Police of the City of Milwaukee Police Department, Raymond Beste, individually and in his official capacity as Captain of Police of the City of Milwaukee Police Department, Joseph Kalivoda, individually and in his official capacity as Captain of Police of the City of Milwaukee Police Department, Edward Kondracki, individually and in his official capacity as Lieutenant of Police of the City of Milwaukee Police Department, Charles Figer, individually and in his official capacity as Sergeant of Police of the City of Milwaukee Police Department and Edward Majkowski, individually and in his official capacity as Sergeant of Police of the City of Milwaukee Police Department, Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Wisconsin

608 F. Supp. 1109

Beverly RATLIFF, Plaintiff, v. The CITY OF MILWAUKEE, Harold A. Breier, individually and in his official capacity as the Chief of Police of the City of Milwaukee Police Department, Raymond Beste, individually and in his official capacity as Captain of Police of the City of Milwaukee Police Department, Joseph Kalivoda, individually and in his official capacity as Captain of Police of the City of Milwaukee Police Department, Edward Kondracki, individually and in his official capacity as Lieutenant of Police of the City of Milwaukee Police Department, Charles Figer, individually and in his official capacity as Sergeant of Police of the City of Milwaukee Police Department and Edward Majkowski, individually and in his official capacity as Sergeant of Police of the City of Milwaukee Police Department, Defendants.

No. 81-C-1407.

United States District Court, E.D. Wisconsin.

May 9, 1985.

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Walter F. Kelly, Sutton & Kelly, Milwaukee, Wis., for plaintiff.

Bruce D. Schrimpf, Asst. City Atty., Milwaukee, Wis., for defendants.

DECISION AND ORDER

WARREN, District Judge.

On November 4, 1981, plaintiff filed this action under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e, et seq., and under 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983 and 1985. Essentially, the complaint alleges that the defendants discriminated against the plaintiff on the basis of her race and sex in terminating her employment as a police officer for the City of Milwaukee. Subject matter jurisdiction exists under Title VII, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e, et seq., and 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331 and 1343. The matter was tried to the Court, commencing on January 31, 1983, through February 4, 1983. Additional testimony was taken on February 7 and 8 and April 4 of the same year. Pursuant to Rule 52(a), Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the following shall comprise the Court's Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law.

I. Background

Plaintiff is a single, adult, black female who resides with her son in a portion of a duplex owned by her parents in the City of Milwaukee. She was born and grew up in Milwaukee, attending Holy Cross Lutheran Grade School and Thomas Edison School. She graduated from Rufus King High School. She attended Milwaukee Area Technical College on and off from 1973 to 1976, also working at various times as an order filler in a crafts store, a dietary assistant in a hospital, and as a bartender. In 1977, she applied for employment with the Milwaukee Police Department and passed the written qualifying exam but failed the physical exam. A second application came to naught when she failed the written exam. After the requisite waiting period, she applied a third time and was successful in passing the written exam, the physical ability test, the background investigation and the oral interview. She was placed as number ten on a waiting list of eligibles and then commenced employment as a member of a trainee class at the Milwaukee Police Academy on October 30, 1978. Such employment was in a probationary status until October 29, 1979.

II. Academy Training

Ms. Ratliff began her employment with the Milwaukee Police Department as one of approximately twenty trainees at the Milwaukee Police Academy. Graduation from the Police Academy is a condition precedent to assignment to a district as an "on-the-street" police officer. Her academy training lasted approximately twenty weeks, during which time she was instructed in the areas of criminal law generally, city ordinances, search and seizure, report writing, traffic laws, self-defense, and firearms training. In addition, Ratliff was instructed how to properly maintain a memo book, in which police officers are required to compile a record of their daily activities such as contact with citizens, arrests made, citations issued, field interrogations and the like.

Captain Raymond Beste, a defendant herein, was the commanding officer at the Police Academy during Ratliff's training period. The Police Academy was staffed by a number of sergeants, each of whom was responsible for instructing the trainees in a particular course of study. Defendant Charles R. Figer was the sergeant who taught report writing to Ratliff while she was at the Academy. Sergeant Orval Zellmer was the class administrator at the Academy.

Students at the Academy were evaluated at four separate times, the first evaluation recorded on November 24, 1978 (Defendants' Ex. 8). Ratliff's first evaluation was generally average in the various skills and attitudes rated. In the area of report writing, however, the evaluating officer indicated that Ratliff's reports were often incomplete; that she lacked the ability to make clear, understandable reports; and that there was much room for improvement in spelling, word usage and completeness. Sergeant Figer made the following comments with respect to Ratliff's report-writing ability:

This officer will have to make significant progress in writing reports. She has problems in the area of spelling, word usage, verb tenses, and filing complete information. If progress is not evident by the 8th week evaluation, I would not recommend that she be continued as a recruit. (Defendants' Ex. 8-C).

In addition to these comments, Sergeant Zellmer recorded two minor infractions committed by Ratliff. On the positive side, the evaluation noted that she scored 87 on the Rules and Regulations examination. The overall recommendation was that she be continued at that time as a trainee.

Captain Beste discussed Ratliff's first evaluation with her on November 24, 1978. Beste described the meeting as cordial and Ratliff's attitude as good. Subsequent to the meeting, Beste made the following comments at the end of the evaluation:

On Friday, 11-24-78 I discussed this report with Recruit Officer Beverly J. Ratliff. I explained the importance of report writing in Police work. Recruit Ratliff was informed that she would have to make a significant improvment sic in her writing if she is to complete the course successfuly sic. I also instructed her to see Sergeant Figer to pick up some of the self study material and advised her that she would have to spend a considerable amount of effort to improve. (Defendants' Ex. 8-C).

Ms. Ratliff testified on direct examination that, during their meeting, Captain Beste had asked her if she had graduated from high school and asked "Did they have such a thing as English for you people?" and "What kind of schools do they have for you people?" (Tr. Vol. I, p. 20). She further testified that Beste told her that she was unqualified and should not be at the Police Academy because there were people better qualified than she who had been waiting for admission for a long time. Plaintiff stated that Captain Beste never considered her Recruit Officer Ratliff, but addressed her as "you people" or "your kind" (Tr. Vol. I, p. 21).

On the day of her meeting with Captain Beste, Ratliff began to keep notes of certain experiences she had as a trainee and officer with the Police Department. A compliation of these experiences, gathered from her original notes, was admitted into evidence as Plaintiff's Exhibit # 1. Ratliff testified that Plaintiff's Exhibit # 1 was prepared at the request of the Milwaukee Police Association for use in future arbitration hearings. She further testified that her original notes had been destroyed in a fire. Thus, according to her own testimony, she began keeping a written record of certain experiences she had as a police trainee and officer little more than three weeks after her matriculation at the Academy. It is ironic that the first page of her record, which describes the meeting with Captain Beste regarding accurate report writing, begins with the date of that meeting which is erroneously recorded as having occurred on November 24, 1979.

The second evaluation period closed on December 22, 1978. Again, Ratliff's evaluation was average in most categories — unremarkable, but not deficient. There were several categories, however, in which she received negative assessments. She had been reprimanded twice, once for not being properly equipped — no call box key — and once for failing to have an assignment in on time. Sergeant Marcellus Cieslak, the firearms instructor, commented that Ratliff had not received a passing score in the firearms training program. Sergeant Figer wrote that Ratliff still was not proficient in her report writing, that she had shown some improvement since the first evaluation, and that she had accepted his suggestion that she write extra reports and review them with him. Figer opined that "continued improvement could bring her to acceptable levels in this area" (Defendants' Ex. 9-9C). The second evaluation also indicates that Ratliff failed her Criminal Law exam with a score of 65.

Following her second post-evaluation meeting with Captain Beste, he reported that Ms. Ratliff had a positive attitude and that she hoped to improve in her weak areas. However, Beste recorded having reservations about Ratliff and her ability to function as a patrol officer. He noted her deficiencies in report writing, academics, and firearms and questioned her ability to perform in these areas under pressure.

The third evaluation period concluded on January 19, 1979. In the report of that date, Ratliff once again received average marks in most categories. One remarkable exception, however, is that she was characterized as having a total lack of ability to interpret or make reports (Defendants' Ex. 16). The evaluation still carries her Criminal Law test score as 65 although she had retaken the exam and passed it (Defendants' Ex. 17). She apparently received passing scores on her other academic tests. Sergeant Cieslik reported that Ratliff remained deficient in her firearms skills. Sergeant Figer stated that Ratliff was unable to file a complete and accurate report, and recommended that she not be continued as a recruit police officer.

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