United States Eighth Circuit

In a 42 U.S.C. section 1983 and state law action brought by a county employee after she was terminated for falsifying a time record and making untruthful statements to supervisors, dismissal and summary judgment rulings in favor of defendants are affirmed where: 1) for purposes of tortious interference claims, plaintiff failed to present evidence of malice or bad faith by any individual defendant, a breach of contract by the county; 2) tortious interference claims against union and officials as the officials were not the cause of the alleged injury, and the union could not be held liable for tortious interference under the circumstances; 3) the district court correctly dismissed procedural due process claims; and 4) defamation claims failed as plaintiff was a "public official" for defamation purposes, and she failed to show actual malice on the part of defendants.

Appellate Information

• Decided 03/08/2007
• Published 03/08/2007

Judges

• LOKEN, Chief Judge., Before LOKEN, Chief Judge, LAY  and MELLOY, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Eighth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Adam A. Gillette, argued, Nichols & Kaster, Minneapolis, MN (John A. Fabian, III, on the brief), for appellant.


• For Appellees:
  
• Kathryn M. Keena, argued, Hastings, MN, for appellees.