Case: Individual Employment Rights/First Amendment (D.D.C.)

The District of Columbia is entitled to summary judgment on a Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs employee’s First Amendment retaliation claim, a federal district court in the District of Columbia ruled. The employee alleged that she was placed on an eight-day suspension in retaliation for reporting her belief that a coworker committed benefits fraud and ethics violations. The court found that she spoke on a matter of public concern but the First Amendment interest in her speech was limited, because it took on the character of a personal grievance over time. The court also noted that her suspension was ...