08-4245 Palka v. Shelton

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Constitutional Law
Public employment; due process

A government employee who resigned rather than face a disciplinary hearing cannot sue for violating his due process rights.

“No doubt Palka was confronted with a difficult choice when the disciplinary charges were lodged against him and the Merit Board hearing loomed. He could retire with full benefits or appear before the Board and potentially be vindicated; the latter option, however, obviously risked termination and loss of his benefits if the charges were substantiated. But this is not the kind of choice that makes an otherwise voluntary resignation involuntary. The Merit Board provides adequate procedural protections to Cook County employees facing disciplinary charges, and its formal procedures were underway when Palka chose to resign.

The Merit Board’s disciplinary process satisfies the County’s procedural due-process obligations, and the County and its officials cannot be held liable when an employee chooses not to avail himself of its protections. See Dusanek, 677 F.2d at 543 (‘[A] state cannot be held to have violated due process requirements when it has made procedural protection[s] available and the plaintiff has simply refused to avail himself of them.’). That Palka decided to resign rather than risk an unfavorable Merit Board decision does not make his resignation involuntary. The district court was right to dismiss his procedural due-process claim.”

Affirmed.

08-4245 Palka v. Shelton

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Kendall, J., Sykes, J.

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