Luz Gonzalez v. Lee County Housing Authority, 161 F.3d 1290 (1998)

Citation: Luz Gonzalez v. Lee County Housing Authority, 161 F.3d 1290 (1998)
Parent Document: Luz Gonzalez v. Lee County Housing Authority, 161 F.3d 1290 (1998)
Jurisdiction: United States (federal)
Effective Date: 1998-12-02
Original Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/759590/luz-gonzalez-v-lee-county-housin... ↗

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A public employee must satisfy four conditions in order to prevail in a section 1983 action alleging that she was fired in retaliation for constitutionally protected speech. See Bryson v. City of Waycross, 888 F.2d 1562, 1565 (11th Cir.1989). First, the employee must demonstrate that the speech allegedly resulting in her termination can "be fairly characterized as constituting speech on a matter of public concern...." Connick v. Myers, 461 U.S. 138, 146, 103 S.Ct. 1684, 1690, 75 L.Ed.2d 708 (1983), cited in Bryson, 888 F.2d at 1565.20 Second, the employee must show that her First Amendment interests outweigh "the interest of the State, as an employer, in promoting the efficiency of the public services it performs through its employees." Pickering v. Board of Educ. of Township High Sch. Dist. 205, 391 U.S. 563, 568, 88 S.Ct. 1731, 1734-35, 20 L.Ed.2d 811 (1968), cited in Bryson, 888 F.2d at 1565. If these two prerequisites are satisfied, then the employee must prove that her speech played a "substantial part" in the employer's termination decision. See Mt. Healthy City Sch. Dist. Bd. of Educ. v. Doyle, 429 U.S. 274, 287, 97 S.Ct. 568, 576, 50 L.Ed.2d 471 (1977), cited in Bryson, 888 F.2d at 1565-66. Finally, the employee must rebut successfully any attempt by the employer to demonstrate that "it would have reached the same decision ... even in the absence of the protected conduct." Mt. Healthy, 429 U.S. at 287, 97 S.Ct. at 576, cited in Bryson, 888 F.2d at 1566.

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