Johnson v. City of Menlo Park

MEMORANDUM *

Aaron Johnson (“Johnson”) brought an action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 arising out of the city of Menlo Park’s termination of his employment. He raises a number of constitutional claims against the city and various individual defendants. The district court granted summary judgment to all defendants on all claims, and Johnson now appeals. We affirm the grant of summary judgment as to all claims except the claim that Johnson was terminated in retaliation for speech protected under the First Amendment.

Johnson argues that his employment was terminated in retaliation for the exercise of his First Amendment rights. In order to establish a retaliatory discharge, an employee must demonstrate that he engaged in constitutionally protected speech that was a substantial or motivating factor in his termination. Keyser v. Sacramento City Unified Sch. Dist., 238 F.3d 1132, 1139 (9th Cir.2001). Johnson has shown that he participated in constitutionally protected speech. Although the gap in time between his protected speech and the termination weighs against a finding that the discharge was retaliatory, Johnson has presented sufficient evidence to create a triable issue of material…

concurring in part and dissenting in part.

I would also affirm on the retaliation claim because there is no substantial evidence raising a triable issue of fact of nexus between Johnson’s speech in 1993 and his termination in 1997, or showing that Menlo Park would not have done what it did anyway.