Koty v. Dupage Cnty.

900 F.3d 515
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
DecidedAugust 16, 2018
DocketNo. 17-3159
StatusPublished
Cited by64 cases

This text of 900 F.3d 515 (Koty v. Dupage Cnty.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Koty v. Dupage Cnty., 900 F.3d 515 (7th Cir. 2018).

Opinion

Kanne, Circuit Judge.

Eric Koty, a deputy in the DuPage County Sheriff's Department, requested a different model of squad car. Notes from Koty's physician indicated Koty should be given a squad car with more legroom, "like an SUV," to accommodate a hip condition. The Department denied Koty's requests. Koty then submitted EEOC complaints alleging the Department had discriminated against him in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA"). Shortly thereafter, the Department reassigned Koty to courthouse duty, for which he would not need to drive a squad car. Koty then sued DuPage County alleging that the Department violated the ADA when it denied his request for an SUV and that the Department wrongfully retaliated against him for making the EEOC complaint. The district court found no such violations and granted summary judgment for the County. For the reasons that follow, we affirm.

I. BACKGROUND

Koty first requested an SUV in January 2014, and then against the next month. This second request was accompanied by a letter from Koty's physician stating that, "if available ... a squad car with more legroom, like an SUV, would be preferable."(R. 58-7 at 2.) In response, employees of the Sheriff's Department measured the legroom in Koty's current squad car, a Crown Victoria, and in an SUV owned by the Department. The Department determined the SUV offered no additional legroom (though Koty contends the wrong measurements were considered) and denied Koty's requests.

On April 7, Koty submitted another letter from his physician that explained that "a squad car with more legroom, like an SUV, [was] necessary" to alleviate Koty's hip pain. (R. 58-6 at 2.) The letter further stated that Koty was otherwise entirely capable of fulfilling his job requirements. (Id. ) The request and letter were accompanied by an EEOC complaint alleging discrimination under the ADA. The following day, the Department reassigned Koty to courthouse duty, which required no time in a squad car.

While on courthouse duty, Koty was temporarily taken off active special operations duty. During this time, he missed a few training exercises, but no special operations missions. He was also asked to submit a plan for securing his weapons in his personal vehicle before returning to active duty.

Eventually, Koty had hip surgery. After the operation, he returned to courthouse duty. He applied for and was granted a transfer back to the law enforcement unit, where he was initially assigned to the midnight *519shift, then to his original daytime shift.

Koty sued, alleging the Department failed to provide reasonable accommodations pursuant to the ADA. He also alleged the Department retaliated against him for filing the EEOC complaint. The district court dismissed the accommodation claim after finding Koty did not qualify as "disabled" under the ADA. The district court then granted summary judgment for the county on Koty's retaliation claim, concluding the Department had taken no adverse employment actions against Koty.

II. ANALYSIS

Koty appeals the judgment of the district court as to both claims. We review de novo the district court's dismissal of a claim pursuant to FED. R. CIV. P. 12(b)(6) and the district court's grant of summary judgment. Williams v. Seniff, 342 F.3d 774, 781 (7th Cir. 2003).

A. The district court did not err when it dismissed Koty's accommodation claim.

To bring a claim under the ADA, the plaintiff must allege that they are disabled. Gogos v. AMS Mech. Sys., Inc. , 737 F.3d 1170, 1172 (7th Cir. 2013). The Act defines a "disability" as "a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities of [an] individual," "a record of such an impairment," or "being regarded as having such an impairment." 42 U.S.C. § 12102(1). Koty's complaint states that he had a "femoral hip impingement with torn labrum among other medical disability" and that "[t]he pain is aggravated by [a]ssigned [v]ehicle," but contains no allegation that the injury affected any major life activity. (R. 1 at 2.)

While the inability to drive has been found in some cases to affect a major life activity, see Winsley v. Cook County, 563 F.3d 598, 604 (7th Cir. 2009), all Koty alleges here is that he is unable to drive one model of vehicle. This is not a disability as defined in the Act. Because Koty failed to allege he had a disability, the district court was correct to dismiss his accommodation claim.

B. The district court did not err when it granted summary judgment in favor of the County on Koty's retaliation claim.

Perhaps knowing that his accommodation claim was doomed, Koty has focused on appeal on the grant of summary judgment for the County on his retaliation claim. Summary judgment is appropriate where "there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a).

"Employers are forbidden from retaliating against employees who raise ADA claims regardless of whether the initial claims of discrimination are meritless." Dickerson v. Bd. of Trs. of Cmty. Coll. Dist. No. 522, 657 F.3d 595, 601 (7th Cir. 2011). To prove a retaliation claim, a plaintiff must prove "(1) he engaged in a statutorily protected activity; (2) he suffered an adverse action; and (3) a causal connection between the two." Id. If this initial burden is satisfied, "the burden then shifts to the defendant to present a non-invidious reason for the adverse employment action." Id. at 602. "If the defendant meets this burden, the plaintiff must then demonstrate that the defendant's proffered reason was pretextual." Id. "[P]retext 'involves more than just faulty reasoning or mistaken judgment on the part of the employer; it is [a] lie, specifically a phony reason for some action.' " Burton v. Bd. of Regents,

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900 F.3d 515, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/koty-v-dupage-cnty-ca7-2018.