United States Seventh Circuit

In a retaliation and employment discrimination case against the city of Chicago, district court's judgment is reversed and remanded where the district court erred in denying the City's motion for judgment as a matter of law on the section 1983 claim: 1) as plaintiff presented no evidence that a final policymaker caused his alleged constitutional deprivation; 2) even if plaintiff had presented evidence that Commissioner was a final policymaker with respect to employment policy, plaintiff failed to present any evidence to prove that he was terminated in retaliation for his exercise of his First Amendment rights; 3) plaintiff cannot seek to hold the City vicariously liable for the acts of its non-policymaking employees as the law does not allow for municipal liability under section 1983 in such a case. District court's judgment awarding attorneys' fees and costs to plaintiff is vacated.

Appellate Information

• Argued 02/27/2009
• Decided 09/02/2009
• Published 09/02/2009

Judges

• TINDER, Circuit Judge., Before MANION, ROVNER, and TINDER, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Seventh Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Daniel B. Waters, Chicago, IL, pro se.


• For Appellees:
  
• Mary Robinson (argued), Downers Grove, IL, Daniel O'Brien, Burke & O'Brien, Chicago, IL, for Plaintiff-Appellee., Kerrie Maloney Laytin (argued), Myriam Z. Kasper, Office of the Corporation Counsel, Appeals Div., Chicago, IL, for Defendant-Appellant.