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DRAFT FOR ATTORNEY REVIEW — NOT FINAL

Begley v. State, 234 Conn. App. 820 (2025)

Citation
Begley v. State, 234 Conn. App. 820 (2025)
Parent Document
Begley v. State, 234 Conn. App. 820 (2025)
Jurisdiction
Connecticut (state)
Effective Date
2025-09-02

Other Sections in This Document (38)

Full Text

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CRADLE, C. J. The plaintiff, Timothy Begley, appeals
       from the summary judgment rendered by the trial court
       in favor of the defendant James Rovella1 on his claim
       alleging that he was transferred in retaliation for filing
       a report of another police officer’s sexual harassment
       of a female officer in violation of General Statutes § 46a-
       60 (b) (4).2 On appeal, the plaintiff claims that the court
       erred in rendering summary judgment in favor of the
       defendant because it improperly concluded that no gen-
       uine issue of material fact existed as to whether he had
       established a prima facie case of retaliation. We affirm
       the judgment of the trial court.3
        The record before the trial court,4 viewed in the light
       most favorable to the plaintiff as the nonmoving party,
          1
            The state of Connecticut and Stavros Mellekas also are defendants in
       this action but are not parties to this appeal. We therefore refer in this
       opinion to Rovella as the defendant.
          2
            General Statutes § 46a-60 (b) provides in relevant part: ‘‘It shall be a
       discriminatory practice in violation of this section . . .(4) [f]or any . . .
       employer . . . to discharge, expel or otherwise discriminate against any
       person because such person has opposed any discriminatory employment
       practice . . . has filed a complaint or testified or assisted in any proceeding
       under section 46a-82, 46a-83 or 46a-84 . . . .’’
          3
            Because we agree that the plaintiff failed to demonstrate that a genuine
       issue of material fact existed as to whether he had established a prima facie
       case of retaliation, we do not reach his additional claim that the trial court
       erred in concluding that he also failed to demonstrate that a genuine issue
       of material fact existed as to whether the defendant’s proffered legitimate,
       nondiscriminatory reason for transferring him was pretextual.
          4
            At oral argument, counsel for the defendant alerted this court that several
       pages of deposition transcripts that were included in the plaintiff’s appellate
       brief were not presented to the trial court in opposition to summary judg-
       ment. Counsel for the plaintiff thereafter sent correspondence to this court,
       explaining: ‘‘On appeal, as [the plaintiff’s] counsel was setting out the facts
       and arguments for the [a]ppellate [b]rief, counsel realized the error. The
       [a]ppellate [b]rief was largely identical to the statement of facts in the
       [o]bjection to [s]ummary [j]udgment, but the proper page references were
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