By: WISCONSIN LAW JOURNAL STAFF//December 26, 2013//
By: WISCONSIN LAW JOURNAL STAFF//December 26, 2013//
United States Court of Appeals For the Seventh Circuit
Civil
Employment — public employment — First Amendment
Where a public employee was terminated pursuant to the recommendation of an independent committee, the termination was not unlawful retaliation in violation of the First Amendment.
“The undisputed evidence thus shows that the defendants were justified in bringing termination charges against Swetlik on the basis of the investigation report. His First Amendment claim must therefore fail. Presented with the supported findings of an outside investigation that Swetlik violated department policy by making untruthful statements, defendants could reasonably rely on the report in voting to bring termination charges. In other words, the defendants’ interest in ensuring the proper functioning of the department outweighed Swetlik’s interest in making his statements about Kingsbury. Because we affirm on the merits, we do not reach the defense of qualified immunity.”
Affirmed.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, Griesbach, J., Hamilton, J.