E. Robert Gallagher, and Michael Warning and John Houck v. L. Thomas Frye, John E. Peetz, Gerald E. Newfarmer, and Cecil Riley

The appellant, E. R. Gallagher, filed this action under 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983 and 1985 in the United States District Court. Gallagher sought damages arising out of his employer’s attempts to terminate His employment as museum curator for the Oakland, California museum. The appellees are city and museum officials, and Gallagher alleged that their actions deprived him of his constitutional rights to due process and equal protection.

The district court dismissed his complaint on the ground that it was barred by the res judicata effect of a prior California state court judgment. That judgment was entered in mandamus proceedings in which Gallagher obtained a writ awarding him back pay and requiring the museum to reinstate him pursuant to the administrative decision of the California State Civil Service Board. We hold that to the extent that this complaint in the district court is based upon an essentially different cause of action asserting a different wrong and claiming relief in addition to that sought in the state- court, this action is not barred, and we reverse.

Gallagher was employed as Senior Curator of History at the Oakland Museum. After receiving notice of his termination, he…