Court upholds Arkansas Bus in product liability case

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Mar 8, 2001

On appeal, defendants argued that this court required plaintiffs to meet a heightened pleading requirement once a defendant raised the defense of qualified immunity.

The court affirmed the district court's denial of a motion for summary judgment, ruling that "having knowledge that subordinates are depriving young children of their constitutional rights, Gonzales' failure to correct this conduct amounts to a deliberate indifference to the rights of Anthony and Latasha that could be conscience shocking." As to Medina and Sentell, the court ruled that Plaintiffs failed to allege a constitutional violation.

Tonya Walker, vs. United Parcel Service, Inc., No. 99-5159

Tonya Walker began working as a United Parcel Service driver in 1990. On Aug. 5, 1997 she filed a charge of sex discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission citing various sexist remarks by her supervisor and alleging that she was disciplined more often than the male drivers. On October 3 Walker wrote to EEOC, asking that it issue her a Notice of Right To Sue. On Oct. 22 Walker received EEOC's right-to-sue letter. EEOC failed to attach a certificate, as called for in the processing of Walker's charge within 180 days. On Novs. 6, 1997,Walker filed suit against UPS in an Oklahoma state court. UPS removed Walker's suit to federal district court. one month later, UPS terminated Walker, citing excessive absenteeism and job abandonment. Walker filed a grievance, arguing that her termination violated the Family and Medical leave Act of 1993 because her absences were pregnancy-related. Her termination was later reduced to a five-day suspension. Walker then supplemented her then pending Title VII action against UPS with a claim that the suspension violated her rights under the FMLA. The district court dismissed Walker's Title VII claim and granted summary judgment in favor of UPS on her FMLA claim.

On appeal Walker raised arguments concerning her Title VII charge and her FMLA charge. As to her Title VII charge, Walker argued that it was error for the district court to dismiss her claim because the EEOC failed to attach a certificate, stating that it had determined it would be unable to complete its administrative processing of Walker's charge within 180 days. The court agreed, ruling that it was error for the district court to dismiss her Title VII claim because of EEOC's administrative oversight.

The court stated that "Walker's right to sue is conditioned only on her taking all steps necessary for administrative exhaustion, not on EEOC's performance of its administrative duties.

The court disagreed, upholding EEOC's early right-to-sue regulation. As to Walker's appeal of the grant of summary judgment in favor of UPS on her FMLA claim, the court affirmed the district court. The court stated that Walker had suffered no actual monetary loss as a result of UPS' asserted violation of the FMLA and has no claim for equitable relief.

Sac and Fox Nation of Missouri; Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska; Prairie Band of Potawatomi Indians; Bill Graves, Governor of State of Kansas, vs. Gale A. Norton, Secretary of Interior, Wyandotte Tribe of Oklahoma, No. 00-3063.