Richardson v. Hartford Public Library

969 F. Supp. 2d 237, 2013 WL 4736212, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 127774
CourtDistrict Court, D. Connecticut
DecidedSeptember 2, 2013
DocketNo. CIV. 3:09CV01220 AWT
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 969 F. Supp. 2d 237 (Richardson v. Hartford Public Library) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Connecticut primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Richardson v. Hartford Public Library, 969 F. Supp. 2d 237, 2013 WL 4736212, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 127774 (D. Conn. 2013).

Opinion

RULING ON CROSS-MOTIONS FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

ALVIN W. THOMPSON, District Judge.

In her Second Amended Complaint, plaintiff Maxine Richardson (“Richardson”) asserts claims against defendants Hartford Public Library (the “Library”) and Jane Doe relating to Richardson’s unsuccessful application for employment at the Library. Specifically, Richardson asserts claims in the nature of Quo Warranto (First Cause of Action); for discrimination in violation of Title VII, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, 29 U.S.C. § 621 et seq. (“ADEA”), and 42 U.S.C. § 1981 (Second, Third, and Fourth Causes of Action, respectively); for violation of her Equal Protection and Due Process rights pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (Fifth and Sixth Causes of Action, respectively); and for Equitable Estoppel (Seventh Cause of Action).

Richardson has moved for partial summary judgment with respect to whether the Library is a government entity, and the Library has moved for summary judgment on all claims against it. For the reasons set forth below, Richardson’s motion for partial summary judgment is being denied and the Library’s motion for summary judgment is being granted in part and denied in part.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Richardson is a Native American woman, who was in her mid-to-late sixties at all times relevant to the complaint. The resume she submitted to the Library indicates she has master’s degrees in library science, reading, education, and corporate and political communication, and that she has work experience as a librarian in public schools and as a director of children’s services at a public library.

The Library was founded in 1774 as The Library Company, was incorporated in 1839 as the Hartford Young Men’s Institute, became the Hartford Library Association in 1878, and was later selected by the City of Hartford to serve as the public library. It has received taxpayer support since 1892. In 1893, the Library’s name was changed to the Hartford Public Library by a special act of the Connecticut General Assembly.

The Library’s affairs are managed by a Board of Directors (the “Board”) that includes 16 directors plus the Mayor of the City of Hartford (the “Mayor”) ex officio. Of the 16 directors other than the Mayor, three are appointed by the Mayor or the Court of Common Council of the City of Hartford (the “Common Council”), one is [240]*240appointed by the Board of Education of the City of Hartford (the “BOE”), and twelve are elected by the Library’s Corporators. The Library’s 150 Corporators are all appointed by the Board. The Library also has a Chief Executive Officer, who is appointed by the Board, serves at the Board’s pleasure, and is responsible for administering the Library and executing the Board’s policies.

In addition to having some of its directors appointed by the Mayor, the Common Council and/or the BOE, the Library has other ties to the City of Hartford (the “City”), including the following:

• The Library receives most of its funding from the City. Over the past several years, the City has funded over 80% of the Library’s budget. Each year, the Common Council appropriates a fixed allocation of money to the Library.1
• “The Library employees participate in the City of Hartford’s medical insurance and pension benefit plans. However, the costs of these benefits is paid for by the Library, and the Library establishes the specific eligibility criteria for its employees.” (Deft.’s Local Rule 56(a)l Statement (Doc. No. 67-2) ¶ 23; see also Pl.’s Local Rule 56(a)2 Statement (Doc. No. 74) ¶ 23 (admitting same).) See also Hartford, Conn. Municipal Code § 2A-1 (“This chapter is intended to define the retirement rights of those employees of the City of Hartford (the ‘city’), the Hartford Public Library (the ‘library’), the Hartford Board of Education (the ‘board’) and the pension commission who are members of the City of Hartford Municipal Employees’ Retirement Fund ....”) (attached at Doc. No. 68-11).
• In a sworn affidavit that was submitted by the Library to the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities, Debra Carrier-Perry (“Perry”), Associate Librarian for Youth Services for the Hartford Public Library, stated that “The Library has an affirmative action and Equal Opportunity policy in place and enforced by the Library. A copy of the policy is attached hereto as Exhibit A,” where the document attached as Exhibit A was the City of Hartford Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity Policy. (Aff. of Debra Carrier-Perry (Doc. No. 68-2 at 14-19) at ¶6.)2
• A five-year plan created by the City in 2005 includes a Library representative on a list of City Department Heads. See City of Hartford Five-Year Consolidated Community Development Plan, May 15, 2005 (Doc. No. 68-12)3 The five-year plan also [241]*241lists library support as one of its objectives.
• The City of Hartford Job Openings website includes a link to Hartford Public Library Job Openings.

In the spring of 2007, the Library advertised the position of Children’s Library Manager and announced it would accept applications for the position. On April 30, 2007, Richardson submitted an application for the position. Due to budgetary constraints, the Library postponed filling the Children’s Library Manager position. In September 2007, three of ten applicants for the position were located by the Library and remained interested in the position. Richardson was among those three applicants, all of whom were interviewed by the Library in late September 2007.

The Library’s hiring process generally works as follows:

Applications and resumes are initially reviewed to determine whether candidates appear to have the minimal qualifications necessary to perform the essential functions of the position. The departmental manager reviews the qualified applicant’s [sic] and selects applicants for interviews. An interview panel (normally consisting of three people) conducts a structured interview by asking each applicant a series of predetermined questions. The responses are rated ... and an average score is assigned to each applicant. After discussion among interview panelists, the highest rated applicant is often offered the position, contingent upon successful completion of applicable background checks.

(Deft.’s Rule 56(a)l Statement ¶ 34; see also PL’s Local Rule 56(a)2 Statement ¶ 34 (admitting same).)

The panel that interviewed Richardson included Perry, Anwar Ahmad (“Ahmad”) (Associate Librarian for Neighborhood Library Services), and Mary Albro (“Albro”) (Associate Librarian for Adult Learner Services). Perry, Ahmad, and Albro were all in their fifties and sixties at times relevant to the complaint. Ahmad is African-American; Perry and Albro are Caucasian.

Out of a possible score of 90 points, the panel members gave Richardson scores of 50, 64, and 65, which put her in the “marginal” range.

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Bluebook (online)
969 F. Supp. 2d 237, 2013 WL 4736212, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 127774, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/richardson-v-hartford-public-library-ctd-2013.