Mississippi Utility Stops Ex-Manager’s First Amendment Claim

A Mississippi public utility defeated a general manager’s claims that he lost his job after reporting incompetence and inefficiency, in violation of his First Amendment rights, a federal district court said.

Mark Johnson’s speech “was primarily driven by private motives,” and disrupted Clarksdale Public Utilities Commission’s operations, the US District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi said. Judge Michael P. Mills’ Monday opinion granted summary judgment to CPUC and other defendants.

CPUC’s interest in preserving operational stability outweighed whatever public interest Johnson’s speech served, the opinion said.

Johnson said CPUC fired him under the pretext that he had wiretapped ...