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Keywords

defendantstatutemotionsummary judgmentdiscrimination

defendantmotionsummary judgmentwilldiscrimination

Related Cases

F-J-R-O-, Matter of

Facts

Trujillo began working as an Aerospace Instructor in the AFJROTC program at Valley High School in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 1991. The APS Board hired Mayerstein in 2001 to replace Trujillo's supervisor. Trujillo's wife applied for the job and later filed a complaint with the EEOC claiming discrimination. By 2002, both Trujillo and Mayerstein were placed on administrative leave due to allegations of misconduct. Trujillo filed suit in 2002 against Mayerstein and other defendants, alleging violations of his rights under various statutes.

Trujillo began working as an Aerospace Instructor (ASI) in the Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps program (AFJROTC) at Valley High School in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 1991. The Board of Education for the Albuquerque Public Schools (the APS Board) hired [Defendant Mark] Mayerstein in the spring of 2001 to replace [*3] Trujillo's supervisor in the position of Senior ASI. Trujillo's wife, Major Lourdes Trujillo, had applied for the job as well and, after APS hired Mayerstein, she filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) claiming national origin and sex discrimination.

Issue

Whether the district court should grant summary judgment in favor of the defendants, particularly regarding the First Amendment retaliation claims.

Whether the Court should exercise its discretion to reconsider its rulings affirming partial summary judgment in favor of Mark Mayerstein, acting in his individual capacity, for alleged violation of Trujillo's First Amendment rights, and whether Mayerstein is entitled to qualified immunity.

Rule

When speech is part of a public employee's official duties, it is not protected under the First Amendment.

When speech is part of a public employee's official duties, it is not made as a citizen and is not protected.

Analysis

The court applied the rule from Garcetti v. Ceballos, determining that Trujillo's speech was made as part of his official duties and thus not protected. The court found that Trujillo did not provide sufficient evidence that his speech constituted protected speech under the First Amendment, leading to the conclusion that the defendants were entitled to summary judgment.

Because the record shows that Trujillo's speech is not protected under the First Amendment as a matter of law, the Court will uphold its September 2, 2005 decision affirming partial summary judgment in favor of Mayerstein on this claim, and will grant summary judgment in favor of Mayerstein and the other individual APS defendants on the remaining claims for violation of Trujillo's First Amendment right to free speech.

Conclusion

The court denied Trujillo's motion for reconsideration and granted summary judgment in favor of Mayerstein and the other individual defendants.

The instructor's motion for reconsideration was denied. Further, the instructor's motion for an order to allow further briefing was granted, but his request for an extension of time in which to depose the supervisor before the district court ruled on the supervisor's summary judgment motion was denied.

Who won?

Mayerstein and the other individual defendants prevailed because the court found that Trujillo's speech was not protected under the First Amendment as it was made in the course of his official duties.

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