Mary Rivera Dennis Rivera v. United States

Mary and Dennis Rivera appeal the dismissal of their claims against the United States, brought under the Federal Tort Claims Act (“FTCA”), 28 U.S.C. §§ 1346 (b) & 2674 (1988), and the first and fifth amendments to the Constitution. They alleged that Mary Rivera’s supervisor at the Air Force base where she was employed retaliated against her for notifying a superior about the supervisor’s late arrivals at work and occasional complete absences. The district court granted the government’s motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction and failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. See Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(1) & (6). We affirm.

FACTS

According to the plaintiffs’ complaint, Mary Rivera was a civilian employee of the United States Air Force at Fairchild Air Force Base, in Spokane County, Washington, where she began working in the library in 1980. In December 1986, Ms. Sherry Hokanson became Rivera’s supervisor. Rivera soon noticed that Hokanson frequently arrived late for work and occasionally failed to show up at all, providing no notice, guidance, or instruction to Rivera and the other library employees. In February 1987, Rivera informed Captain Schneider,…