United States Ninth Circuit

In an action by a former city employee under 42 USC section 1983, alleging retaliatory dismissal in violation of her First Amendment rights, the district court's denial of the defendant assistant chief of police's claim to qualified immunity is affirmed, where: 1) the plaintiff's speech was a matter of public concern; 2) the plaintiff spoke as a private citizen and not pursuant to her official job duties; 3) the defendant did not meet his burden to show that the city would have fired the plaintiff even in the absence of her protected speech activities; and 4) a reasonable official in the defendant's position would have known that it was unlawful to retaliate against an employee for providing subpoenaed deposition testimony in connection with a civil rights lawsuit alleging government misconduct.

Appellate Information

• Decided 05/08/2012
• Published 05/08/2012

Judges

• Koh

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Joseph R. Shaeffer, Brenda L. Bannon