Tsakalos v. Ogden City
Tsakalos v. Ogden City
Opinion of the Court
Jo Ann Tsakalos (“Tsakalos”) appeals from a district court decision affirming a decision of the Ogden City Civil Service Commission (“CSC”) terminating her employment with the city. The CSC action resulted from an ex parte order of the Third Circuit Court, which Tsakalos claims was issued in violation of her civil service employment rights. We affirm.
Tsakalos became employed by Ogden City in 1975 as a court clerk and was in a supervisory position at the time of her termination. On March 4, 1983, she was suspended for fifteen days pending an investigation of allegations that she had tampered with court records. The Ogden City Manager conducted a hearing and found that Tsakalos had withheld from the Drivers License Division information about traffic citations she and her relatives had received. On March 21, he ordered that she be demoted to a lower civil service classification.
Based on the results of the administrative investigation and hearing, the Board of Judges of the Third Circuit Court issued an order prohibiting Tsakalos from performing any function related to court records. This order had the practical effect of making Tsakalos ineligible for any employment in the clerk’s office. On April 7, the city manager amended his order in accord with the Board of Judges’ order and, finding that there were no other civil service positions open for which Tsakalos was qualified, placed her on inactive, unpaid status. She appealed this decision to the CSC,
On appeal to this Court, Tsakalos argues that the circuit court judges’ ex parte order violated her statutory and civil service employment rights. However, the circuit court judges who issued the order are employees of the state,
. The state of Utah is a party to this action only because Ogden City filed a third-party complaint against the State seeking indemnification from the State if Tsakalos prevailed over Ogden City, Tsakalos did not sue the State,
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Jo Ann TSAKALOS, and v. OGDEN CITY, a body politic, Cowles Mallory, Ogden City Manager, and John Sampson, Stephen Denkers and Lynn Cottrell, Ogden City Civil Service Commissioners, and Respondents OGDEN CITY, a municipal corporation, Third-Party and v. STATE of Utah, Third-Party and
- Status
- Published