Peter Rollins v. Raymond Mabus, Jr.
Opinion of the Court
MEMORANDUM
Plaintiff-Appellant Peter Rollins (“Rollins”) appeals the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of DefendantAppellee Raymond Mabus, Secretary of the Navy (“the Navy”). We reverse.
1. In ruling on the Navy’s motion for summary judgment, the district court properly precluded consideration of any claim except for Rollins’s Title VU race discrimination claim. Rollins’s original complaint alleged Title VII discrimination and retaliation claims along with several tort claims. The Navy moved to dismiss all but Rollins’s race discrimination claim. Rather than oppose the motion to dismiss, Rollins filed a Statement of Non-Opposition. Rollins then stipulated to a dispositive order that dismissed with prejudice “all claims against all defendants except plaintiffs claim for discrimination under Title VII against Raymond E. Mabus, Secretary of the Navy, based on plaintiff being charged with AWOL and receiving a Decision on his Proposed Suspension.” By not opposing the motion to dismiss and agreeing to the dispositive order, Rollins abandoned all claims except for his Title VII discrimination claim. Carvalho v. Equifax Info. Servs., LLC, 629 F.3d 876, 888 (9th Cir. 2010) (“A plaintiff who makes a claim ... in his complaint, but fails to raise the issue in response to a defendant’s motion to dismiss ..., has effectively abandoned his claim, and cannot raise it on appeal.”).
2. The district court erred when it granted summary judgment in favor of the Navy on Rollins’s sole remaining claim. Rollins established a prima facie case of race discrimination under the McDonnell Douglas burden-shifting framework. McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green, 411 U.S. 792, 93 S.Ct 1817, 36 L.Ed.2d 668 (1973). Although the Navy articulated a legitimate non-discriminatory reason for charging Rollins with AWOL and proposing a fourteen-day suspension, Rollins’s opposition raised a triable issue of material fact that the Navy’s reason was pretextual. Viewing all facts in the light most favorable to Rollins, both Salvador Araujo and Robert Kremer were, similarly situated individuals who were treated more favorably than Rollins for similar misconduct. Comparator “employees need not be identical, but must be similar in material respects.” Earl v. Nielsen Media Research, Inc., 658 F.3d 1108, 1114 (9th Cir. 2011); see also Vasquez v. Cnty. of Los Angeles, 349 F.3d 634, 641 (9th Cir. 2003) (holding that “individuals are similarly situated when they have similar jobs and display similar conduct.”). Here, Rollins, Araujo, and Kremer were all federal civilian police officers who violated their employer’s leave policies, which Rollins argued served the same purpose of ensuring an adequate work
Further, the district court erroneously found that Rollins’s “insubordination” was an “additional basis for his suspension” and for “distinguishing him from Araujo and Kremer.” Rollins’s notice of proposed suspension did not mention “insubordination,” and the human resources employee who reviewed the notice stated in her deposition that insubordination was not a reason provided to Rollins for his suspension. Therefore, it was disputed whether Rollins was treated less favorably than Araujo and Kramer and whether insubordination justified the adverse employment actions at issue. Given these material factual disputes, the district court erred in granting summary judgment in favor of the Navy.
AFFIRMED in part, REVERSED in part, and REMANDED.
The parties shall bear their own costs on appeal.
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3.
Concurring in Part
concurring in part and dissenting in part:
I respectfully dissent from the decision to reverse and remand the district court’s grant of summary judgment on Rollins’ discrimination claim. I concur in the decision affirming the district court’s dismissal of his remaining claims.
Rollins’ evidence did not show that Araujo and Kremer were similarly situated individuals treated more favorably than him for similar misconduct.
Both Araujo and Kremer were warned and required to obtain doctors’ notes in the future for suspected misuse of sick leave. Rollins was disciplined more harshly than them for being absent without leave. Though other employers might treat both sorts of absences as equivalent, the Navy did not. The Navy treats AWOL as a much more serious offense.
The record does not support the inference that Rollins’ supervisors discriminated against him on account of race. The supervisor who notified Rollins of the proposed suspension for being AWOL got Rollins the job at Monterey in the first place, and lived with Rollins for a time. They were apparently friends until Rollins
. Earl v. Nielsen Media Research, Inc., 658 F.3d 1108, 1114 (9th Cir. 2011).
. Compare Suppl. ER 398 (when sick leave abuse is suspected, a supervisor may issue a letter of requirement, requiring the employee to obtain a doctor's note for each subsequent day of sick leave requested), and id. at 572 (same), with id. at 573 (AWOL "will be charged to an employee who absents [himself] from an appointed place of duty without approval,’’ and results in mandatory disciplinary action), and id. at 375 (punishment for AWOL first offenses ranges from reprimand to removal, and 5 day suspension to removal for second offenses).
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Peter B. ROLLINS, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Raymond E. MABUS, Jr., Secretary of the Navy; Et Al., Defendants-Appellees
- Status
- Unpublished