Pennycuff v. McNutt

95 F. Supp. 3d 1325, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26949, 2015 WL 1004007
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Oklahoma
DecidedMarch 5, 2015
DocketCase No. CIV-14-949-M
StatusPublished

This text of 95 F. Supp. 3d 1325 (Pennycuff v. McNutt) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Pennycuff v. McNutt, 95 F. Supp. 3d 1325, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26949, 2015 WL 1004007 (W.D. Okla. 2015).

Opinion

ORDER

VICKI MILES-LaGRANGE, Chief Judge.

Before the Court is Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss, filed December 8, 2014. On January 8, 2015, plaintiff responded, and on January 15, 2015, defendants replied. Based on the parties’ submissions, the Court makes its determination.

I. Introduction1

Plaintiff was employed with the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (“OCC”) from July 30, 2012 through December 10, 2013 as a motor vehicle enforcement officer. Plaintiff alleges two separate instances where he informed his supervisor Sargent Gary Hewett (“Hewett”) of wrongdoing by other OCC employees. The first instance was in or about August 2012 when plaintiff alleges he informed his supervisor that he discovered a computer generated wagering bracket created by OCC employee Ricky Lawrence (“Law[1327]*1327rence”) for personal use on one of the OCC computers. Plaintiff alleges that Lawrence was subsequently promoted. Plaintiff next alleges that in or about October 2012, he discovered and reported to Hewett that OCC employee Cheryl Harris (“Harris”) accepted beer from an Anheuser Bush delivery truck in return for allowing overweight vehicles to pass through a weight station.

Plaintiff alleges that on November 26, 2013, he met with defendants Jack McNutt (“McNutt”) and Mike Henley (“Henley”) to discuss an email stating that plaintiff had made a disparaging remark about Hewett. Plaintiff alleges that he denied making the remark, and that Henley told him that he was very promotable and his job was not in jeopardy. Plaintiff also alleges that later on that same day he told McNutt about the illegal activities of Lawrence and Harris. Plaintiff then alleges that he observed a change in McNutt’s conduct towards him, that McNutt refused to speak to plaintiff after he informed McNutt of the other employees’ actions, and that McNutt referred to him as “shit for brains” in front of other employees. Plaintiff alleges that he was terminated from his employment on December 10, 2013.

Plaintiff alleges that reporting of the illegal activities impacting tax payer funds constitutes protected free speech pursuant to the First Amendment; that he was exercising his right to freedom of speech; and that his termination was in retaliation for exercising his constitutional right of freedom of speech, which was a violation of 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Defendants now move this Court to dismiss plaintiffs claim because (1) they are entitled to qualified immunity; and (2) plaintiff has failed to state a claim pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6).

II. Discussion

A. Treating Defendants’ Motion as a Motion for Summary Judgment

In his response, plaintiff asserts that the Court should convert defendants’ motion to dismiss to a motion for summary judgment because defendants have presented matters outside of the pleadings. See Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(d) (“If, on a motion under Rule 12(b)(6) or 12(c), matters outside the pleadings are presented to and not excluded by the court, the motion must be treated as one for summary judgment under Rule 56. All parties must be given a reasonable opportunity to present all the material that is pertinent to the motion.”). The Court has thoroughly reviewed defendants’ motion to dismiss, and while the Court finds that defendants have presented a version of the facts that slightly differs from plaintiffs alleged facts, these slight differences can be excluded by this Court. The Court, therefore, will not convert defendants’ motion to dismiss to a motion for summary judgment.

B. Qualified Immunity

Defendants assert that plaintiffs 42 U.S.C. § 1983 claim should be dismissed because they are entitled to qualified immunity. “When a defendant pleads qualified immunity, the plaintiff has the heavy burden of establishing: (1) that the defendant’s actions violated a federal constitutional or statutory right; and (2) that the right violated was clearly established at the time of the defendant’s actions.” Scott v. Hern, 216 F.3d 897, 910 (10th Cir.2000) (internal citations omitted). “To be clearly established, ‘[t]he contours of the right must be sufficiently clear that a reasonable official would understand that what he is doing violates that right.’ ” Gann v. Cline, 519 F.3d 1090, 1092 (10th Cir.2008) (quoting Anderson v. Creighton, 483 U.S. 635, 640, 107 S.Ct. 3034, 97 L.Ed.2d 523 (1987)). [1328]*1328A plaintiff can demonstrate that a constitutional right is clearly established “by reference to cases from the Supreme Court, the Tenth Circuit, or the weight of authority from other circuits.” Id. “The judges of the district courts and the courts of appeals should be permitted to exercise their sound discretion in deciding which of the two prongs of the qualified immunity analysis should be addressed first in light of the circumstances in the particular case at hand.” Pearson v. Callahan, 555 U.S. 223, 236, 129 S.Ct. 808, 172 L.Ed.2d 565 (2009).

Defendants assert that (1) they did not violate plaintiffs First Amendment rights; and (2) that the law is not clearly established as to whether defendants violated plaintiffs First Amendment rights. Plaintiff contends that his First Amendment right to freedom of speech was violated because his speech related to a matter of public concern and that the law is clearly established. In order for plaintiffs First Amendment right to freedom of speech to have been violated, the Court must determine if his speech was protected. To determine the scope of an employee’s speech the Tenth Circuit uses the Gareetti-Pickering analysis.

First, the court must determine whether the employee speaks pursuant to [his] official duties. If the employee speaks pursuant to his official duties, then there is no constitutional protection because the restriction on speech simply reflects the exercise of employer control over what the employer itself has commissioned or created. Second, if an employee does not speak pursuant to his official duties, but instead speaks as a citizen, the court must determine whether the subject of the speech is a matter of public concern. If the speech is not a matter of public concern, then the speech is unprotected and the inquiry ends. Third, if the employee speaks as a citizen on a matter of public concern, the court must determine whether the employee’s interest in commenting on the issue outweighs the interest of the state as employer. Fourth, assuming the employee’s interest outweighs that of the employer, the employee must show that his speech was a “substantial factor or a motivating factor in [a] detrimental employment decision.

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Related

Anderson v. Creighton
483 U.S. 635 (Supreme Court, 1987)
Garcetti v. Ceballos
547 U.S. 410 (Supreme Court, 2006)
Pearson v. Callahan
555 U.S. 223 (Supreme Court, 2009)
Brammer-Hoelter v. Twin Peaks Charter Academy
492 F.3d 1192 (Tenth Circuit, 2007)
Gann v. Cline
519 F.3d 1090 (Tenth Circuit, 2008)

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Bluebook (online)
95 F. Supp. 3d 1325, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26949, 2015 WL 1004007, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pennycuff-v-mcnutt-okwd-2015.