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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLORADO

Senior District Judge Richard P. Matsch

Civil Action No. 11-cv-02515-RPM

YOLANDA HANSON,

Plaintiff,

v.

COLORADO JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT, 4th JUDICIAL DISTRICT PROBATION

DEPARTMENT, 

Defendant. 

 

ORDER GRANTING SUMMARY JUDGMENT

Yolanda Hanson was fired from her position on the administrative staff of the Fourth

Judicial District Probation Department by Chief Judge Kirk Samelson on February 9, 2009,

effective February 12, 2009. She filed this action on January 20, 2012, claiming this decision

was a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et

seq., because the judge’s decision was a result of information given to him by her supervisors

who were motivated by discrimination against her because she is black and in retaliation for her

complaints about racial discrimination in the Probation Department. 

The stated reason for Judge Samelson’s decision is in this paragraph of the termination

letter:

 Your actions constitute cause for disciplinary action under Personnel Rule 23.D.e

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for “the abuse of paid time off or extended sick leave for an absence, or inappropriate

use of extended sick leave for a non-medically certified absence.” Furthermore, the

Colorado Judicial Branch Code of Conduct requires that employees “[d]emonstrate

the highest standards of personal integrity, truthfulness and honesty” in performing

their job duties. I find fraudulently securing FML to work another job to be an

egregious violation of the Code of Conduct that in and of itself warrants termination.

 Def’s Ex. X. 

The plaintiff claims that this was pretext. After full discovery and submission of relevant

materials, the conclusion is that Ms. Hanson has failed to provide sufficient evidence to support

a finding of pretext. Accordingly the defendant’s motion for summary judgment is granted.

It is undisputed that in November, 2007, Ms. Hanson requested two weeks leave to care

for her mother who was scheduled for surgery. When the plaintiff made this request, she did not

have enough accrued vacation time for two weeks’ paid leave. Her supervisor, Donnette Thayer,

told the plaintiff that her leave would need to be designated as leave under the Family Medical

Leave Act (“FMLA” or “FML”). Thayer explained that the plaintiff’s FMLA leave would be

paid to the extent of the plaintiff’s accrued paid time off and otherwise would be unpaid. Thayer

provided the plaintiff with a written form for requesting FMLA leave, which the plaintiff

completed and returned to Thayer. (Def.’s Ex. P). Thayer approved two weeks of FMLA leave

for the plaintiff beginning on November 30, 2007. 

The plaintiff was absent from her Probation Department job for two weeks, beginning on

November 30, 2007. The entire leave was designated as FMLA leave. Of that total leave, 5.5

hours were accounted for as leave without pay and the other hours were compensated as paid

time off. 

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The plaintiff used the FMLA leave to go California for job training with an airline

company. 

The plaintiff testified that she told Thayer about the job opportunity with the airline

company and Thayer knew she was going to California for training in December 2007.

Thayer denied these statements. Assuming their truth, the undeniable fact is that the

relevant policy was violated and that if Thayer had approved this mis-use of FMLA leave, she

too would have been subject to discipline. 

At any rate, the information relied on by the Chief Judge was that Ms. Hanson lied to her

supervisor. That was the result of the investigation conducted by Human Resources Director

Mindy Masias and Senior HR Manager Eric Brown with the State Court Administrator’s Office. 

It is 

ORDERED that the defendant’s motion for summary judgment is granted. The Clerk

shall enter judgment for the defendant, dismissing the complaint and this civil action and

awarding costs. 

Dated: March 28, 2013

BY THE COURT:

s/Richard P. Matsch

 

Richard P. Matsch, Senior District Judge

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