Reyes-Orta v. Highway & Transp. Auth.

SHEILA REYES-ORTA, ET AL., Plaintiffs, v. HIGHWAY AND TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY, ET AL., Defendants.

Civil No. 11-1410 (SEC)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF PUERTO RICO

September 29, 2014

OPINION AND ORDER

Before the Court are the defendants' motion for summary judgment (Docket # 74), the plaintiffs' opposition thereto (Docket # 87), the defendants' reply (Docket # 97), and the plaintiffs' surreply (Docket # 104).¹ After reviewing the filings and the applicable law, the defendants' motion for summary judgment is GRANTED.

Factual and Procedural Background

Sheila Reyes-Orta, her husband, and their conjugal partnership (collectively, Plaintiffs) filed this § 1983 political discrimination suit pursuant to the U.S. Constitution as well as under the laws of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Docket # 1. The defendants are the Puerto Rico Highway and Transportation Authority (Authority); Rubén Hernández-Gregorat, Puerto Rico's former Secretary of Transportation and the Executive Director of the Authority; Brenda Gomila-Santiago, Director of Human Resources; and Cesar Maldonado-Vázquez, Labor Relations Specialist (collectively, Defendants). Id. The individual defendants are sued in their official and personal capacities.² Plaintiffs allege that Reyes-Orta was fired from her career post because of her political affiliation with the Popular Democratic Party (PDP). Docket # 1. She seeks monetary compensation for her alleged grievances as well as equitable relief in the form of full reinstatement at the Authority. Id.

At the motion-to-dismiss stage, the Court dismissed with prejudice Plaintiffs' Fourteenth Amendment claims, as well as the tort claims against them. See Reyes-Orta v. Highway and Transporation Authority, 843 F.Supp. 2d 216 (D.P.R. 2012). Therefore, the only surviving federal law claim is Plaintiffs' claims under the First Amendment.

Defendants now move for summary judgment arguing that (1) Plaintiffs established neither a prima facie case of political discrimination under § 1983 nor a conspiracy claim against Defendants; (2) the claims against Maldonado-Vázquez are time-barred; and (3) they are entitled to the Mt. Healthy defense. The relevant uncontested facts, in the light most favorable to Plaintiffs, follow.

Reyes-Orta has been a public sector employee in the Government of Puerto Rico for almost three decades. She alleges to be an open and active member of the PDP, having participated in PDP meetings and elections campaigns. Docket # 1. She has never occupieda trust position with the Authority and has never talked about politics with either Hernández-Gregorat or Gomila-Santiago. Statement of Uncontested Facts (SUF) Docket # 73, ¶¶ 18-20.

Hernández-Gregorat, a member of the New Progressive Party (NPP), became the Authority's Executive Director after the 2008 general elections. Docket # 87, p. 5; Docket # 88-3, ¶ 3. Luis Sánchez-Casanova was thereafter appointed Human Resources Director, but he resigned approximately six months later. Docket # 73-1, p. 155-158. Gomila-Santiago substituted Sánchez-Casanova. Id.

The audit and Reyes-Orta's termination

In 2001, Reyes-Orta was transferred from the Industrial Commission to the Authority as "Human Resources Program Chief." Under previous PDP administrations, Reyes-Orta's appointment was the subject of two investigations. SUF ¶ 106.

First, on November 6, 2002, the Internal Audit Office of the Industrial Commission issued a report with the results of an investigation regarding the "certification of duties" submitted by Reyes-Orta for the job position of Human Resources Program Chief. SUF ¶ 80; see also Docket # 97-9. According to the report, (1) the certification provided to the Office of Human Resources was incorrect because the essential duty of supervising clerical and secretarial personnel was not part of the duties of Reyes-Orta's previous position at the Industrial Commission; and (2) Guillermo A. Rivera-Bermúdez (Rivera-Bermúdez), Program Officer of Human Resources at the Industrial Commission, admitted that even though he had signed the certification of duties, it was prepared by Reyes-Orta. SUF ¶ 84; Docket # 77-14, p. 5-7. The report further stated that "these deceitful and wrong actions areindicative of fraud, the facts and circumstances point toward the possibility that false information was submitted with the intention of making Ms. Sheila Reyes-Orta qualify and obtain a position in the Highway Authority." Id.

Based on the findings of the report, the Internal Audit Office concluded that the certification of duties was issued without due authorization or review by the Director of the Office of Human Resources (Anamari Melecio-Rivero); that Rivera-Bermúdez prepared the Certification of Duties without verifying that it contained true and accurate information; and that an erroneous or fraudulent certification was issued for the use of another agency. Docket # 77-14, p. 8. Under Administrative Order No. 03-85/Rules of Conduct and Procedure Regarding Corrective and Disciplinary Measures, these actions entailed permanent separation from service. Id. at 7. Thus, the report recommended referring the investigation "to the Legal Division in order to broaden the same or determine the application of the corresponding corrective measures and sanctions." SUF ¶ 87; Docket # 77-14.

Thereafter, on May 14, 2004, the Authority's Internal Auditor prepared a memorandum regarding a "Special Audit" conducted to investigate Reyes-Orta's submission of the allegedly erroneous or fraudulent certification of duties to the Authority. SUF ¶ 90; Docket # 77-15; see also Opposition to Statement of Unconstested Facts (OSUF) Docket # 88, ¶ 94. The investigation was requested because Reyes-Orta was being considered for a "merit-based pay raise," and the Human Resources Office uncovered that the Internal Audit Office was investigating her. Docket # 77-15, p. 1. According to the memorandum, the Authority's investigation "confirmed that the Industrial Commissionperformed an audit in which it determined that the certification that Ms. Reyes-Orta presented to the Highway and Transportation Authority was erroneous or fraudulent[, but it could] not . . . be determined whether said certification was a determining factor in concluding that the candidate met all the requirements at the time of recruitment." SUF ¶ 92; Docket # 97-10, p. 4. The memorandum recommended further analysis and to order the corresponding corrective actions. Id. The record shows no further action with regard to Reyes-Orta on behalf of the PDP administrations.

Then, on December 9, 2009, Hernández-Gregorat notified Reyes-Orta of his "intention" to declare her appointment null. SUF ¶ 69; see also Docket # 77-11. According to the letter of intent, the Authority "is currently performing and has performed multiple audits regarding the personnel transactions carried out." Docket # 77-11. It further stated that the audit revealed the following: (1) Reyes-Orta's qualification for the position of Human Resources Program Chief was preceded by the presentation of a certification of duties from the Personnel Office of the Industrial Commission which was not authorized or certified as true by the then Director of the Personnel Office of the Industrial Commission; (2) the Certification of Duties presented by Reyes-Orta contained false or fraudulent information regarding her supervisory experience and that she did not qualify for the position; and (3) her transfer from the Industrial Commission to the Authority was processed as a "transfer-promotion" in contravention of the merit principle, the Authority's laws and regulations, and the principle of free competition. Id.; see also SUF ¶ 70-74.

Approximately a month later, Hernández-Gregorat issued Resolution No. 2010-01, which declared null various resolutions (Resolutions 2000-15, 2001-13, and 2001-24) thathad allowed certain personnel transactions that were otherwise prohibited by the Authority's laws and regulations. SUF ¶ 66; see also Docket # 77-10.³ It also authorized the Authority to take the appropriate measures to review, correct or nullify those personnel transactions. Id.; see also SUF ¶ 67. The Authority thus conducted an audit of the personnel files of all of its employees. SUF ¶ 68. An informal hearing was held on March 17, 2010, Dockets # 77-19 & 77-18, and the examining officer upheld Hernández-Gregorat's decision to terminate Reyes-Orta. Id. On May 3, 2010, Reyes-Orta was terminated. Docket # 77-19.

The leak of information to "El Nuevo Día" newspaper

On April 29, 2009, "El Nuevo Día" published an article divulging the salaries of certain trust employees at the Authority. SUF ¶ 50. The article stated that its source was a "change report" generated by the Authority's Human Resources Office. Id. Hernández-Gregorat ordered an investigation to identify the source of the leak, but never targeted any particular employee. SUF ¶ 52. In accordance with the Authority's Regulation for Disciplinary Measures, Sánchez-Casanova initiated an internal and preliminary investigation on this matter. See Docket # 133, Defendants' Supplemental Statements of Uncontroverted Material Facts (SSUF) ¶¶ 124-5; Docket # 133-2, p. 47. Sánchez-Casanova then rendered his report to the Industrial Relations Office of the Authority, which is the office in charge of conducting official investigations and making recommendations to theSecretary on disciplinary matters. Docket # 133-2, p. 47. He never concluded that Reyes-Orta was the person responsible for the leak of information. Docket # 77-8.⁴

While the investigation regarding the leak of information continued, in April 2009 "the guys from Information [Technology] went into Human Resources to check on the computers of everybody there, and from that point on, [Reyes-Orta's computer] stopped working." Docket # 73-1, p. 152. She verbally reported the problem to Sánchez-Casanova when he was the Human Resources Director, and later to Brenda Gomila,...