United States Eighth Circuit

In a suit brought by unsuccessful white applicants for entry level firefighter positions alleging they were victims of unlawful reverse racial discrimination during the St. Louis Fire Department's hiring processes, summary judgment and awards in favor of plaintiffs are reversed and remanded where: 1) the district court ruled that the prior consent decree was constitutionally entered, thus the city had to comply with a 50% black-applicant hiring requirement until the dissolution of the decree; and 2) dissolution of the decree alone does not establish that the city's post-dissolution hiring decisions were the product of intentional race discrimination or adversely affected plaintiffs.

Appellate Information

• Decided 08/26/2008
• Published 08/26/2008

Judges

• LOKEN, Chief Judge., Before LOKEN, Chief Judge, JOHN R. GIBSON and MELLOY, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Eighth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Nancy R. Kistler, argued, St. Louis, MO (Judith A. Ronzio and Sharon Stone, on the brief), for appellant.


• For Appellees:
  
• Charles W. Bobinette, argued, St. Louis, MO, for appellee, Deeken., Clyde E. Craig, argued, Naples, FL, for appellee, Martinez.