NOT PRECEDENTIAL

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT

______________

No . 1 9

- 1 1 8 0

______________

N E L S O N O C A S I O

v

.

M A Y O R M I C H A E L C I A C H ; C O U N C I L P R E S I D E N T

C H R I S T I N E P E T E R S O N ; T H E B O R O U G H O F U P L A N D

M a y o r M i c h a e l C i a c h

, C o u n c i l P r e s i d e n t C h r i s t i n e P e t e r s o n

,

A p p e l l a n t s

_ _____________

On Ap peal from the United States District Court

f

or t he E a s t e r n District of P e n n s y l v a n i a

(D.C. C i v

. No

. 2

- 1 7

- c v

- 0 0 7 5 5 )

Honorable J

. C u r t i s J o y n e r , D istrict Judge

______________

A r g u e d F e b r u a r y 5

, 2 0 2 0

BEFORE: S H W A R T Z

, S C I R I C A

, an d COWEN

, Circuit Judge s

(Fi led: M arch 10, 20 2 0 )

______________

J o s e p h S

. O x m a n ( a r g u e d )

O x m a n G o o d s t a d t K u r i t z

1 0 1 5 C h e s t n u t S t r e e t

S u i t e 1 5 0 0

P h i l a d e l p h i a

, P A 1 9 1 0 7

A t t o r n e y f o r A p p e l l e e

R o b e r t P

. D i D o m e n i c i s ( a r g u e d )2 M a r k A

. R a i t h

H o l s t e n & A s s o c i a t e s

O n e O l i v e S t r e e t

M e d i a

, P A 1 9 0 6 3

A t t o r n e y s f o r A p p e l l a n t s

______________

OPINION ∗

______________

COWEN

, Circuit Judge

.

D e f e n d a n t s M i c h a e l C i a c h a n d C h r i s t i n e P e t e r s o n ( “ A p p e l l a n t s ” ) a p p e a l f r o m t h e

o r d e r o f t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s D i s t r i c t C o u r t f o r t h e E a s t e r n D i s t r i c t o f P e n n s y l v a n i a d e n y i n g

D e f e n d a n t s ’ m o t i o n f o r s u m m a r y j u d g m e n t a s t o t h e p r o c e d u r a l d u e p r o c e s s a n d r e l a t e d

c o n s p i r a c y c l a i m s a g a i n s t A p p e l l a n t s

. B e c a u s e w e c o n c l u d e t h a t t h e y a r e e n t i t l e d t o

q u a l i f i e d i m m u n i t y

, w e w i l l v a c a t e t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t ’ s o r d e r t o t h e e x t e n t t h a t i t d e n i e d

t h e m o t i o n f o r s u m m a r y j u d g m e n t a s t o t h e c l a i m s a g a i n s t A p p e l l a n t s a n d w i l l r e m a n d

w i t h i n s t r u c t i o n s f o r t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t t o g r a n t t h e s u m m a r y j u d g m e n t m o t i o n a s t o t h o s e

c l a i m s ( w i t h o u t p r e j u d i c e t o a n y r i g h t s o r r e m e d i e s O c a s i o m a y p o s s e s s u n d e r s t a t e l a w )

.

B e c a u s e t h i s o p i n i o n r e s o l v e s a l l p e n d i n g c l a i m s

, w e f u r t h e r i n s t r u c t t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t t o

d i s m i s s t h e c o m p l a i n t

.

I

.

T h i s c a s e a r i s e s o u t o f P l a i n t i f f N e l s o n O c a s i o ’ s t e r m i n a t i o n a s P o l i c e C h i e f o f

U p l a n d B o r o u g h

, P e n n s y l v a n i a ( “ U p l a n d ” )

. A t t h e t i m e o f h i s t e r m i n a t i o n

, C i a c h w a s

M a y o r o f U p l a n d

, a n d P e t e r s o n s e r v e d a s b o t h a m e m b e r o f U p l a n d ’ s B o r o u g h C o u n c i l

∗ T his dis p o siti on is not an opinion of the full Court and pursuant t o I. O.P . 5.7

does not c onsti tute bi nding prece d ent.3 a n d a n U p l a n d P o l i c e D e p a r t m e n t A d m i n i s t r a t i v e A s s i s t a n t

. O c a s i o a l l e g e d

, i n t e r a l i a

,

t h a t A p p e l l a n t s a n d U p l a n d ( “ D e f e n d a n t s ” ) v i o l a t e d h i s p r e

- d e p r i v a t i o n p r o c e d u r a l d u e

p r o c e s s r i g h t s u n d e r t h e F o u r t e e n t h A m e n d m e n t a n d C l e v e l a n d B o a r d o f E d u c a t i o n v

.

L o u d e r m i l l

, 4 7 0 U

. S

. 5 3 2 ( 1 9 8 5 )

.

T h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t d e n i e d D e f e n d a n t s ’ m o t i o n f o r summary j u d g m e n t a s t o

O c a s i o ’ s p r o c e d u r a l d u e p r o c e s s c l a i m a g a i n s t A p p e l l a n t s i n t h e i r i n d i v i d u a l c a p a c i t i e s

.

S p e c i f i c a l l y

, t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t o b s e r v e d t h a t O c a s i o d i d n o t a t t e n d t h e L o u d e r m i l l

h e a r i n g c o n d u c t e d b y t h e B o r o u g h P u b l i c S a f e t y C o m m i t t e e o n F e b r u a r y 2 3

, 2 0 1 6

( a l t h o u g h a F r a t e r n a l O r d e r o f P o l i c e a t t o r n e y e v i d e n t l y d i d a t t e n d t h e h e a r i n g o n h i s

b e h a l f )

. 1 H e a l s o d i d n o t a t t e n d e i t h e r a s e c o n d L o u d e r m i l l h e a r i n g h e l d o n N o v e m b e r 2

,

2 0 1 6 o r t h e B o r o u g h C o u n c i l ’ s v o t e o n N o v e m b e r 1 6

, 2 0 1 6 t e r m i n a t i n g h i s

e m p l o y m e n t

. 2 A c c o r d i n g t o t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t

, O c a s i o a r g u e d t h a t t h e p r o c e s s h e w a s

a f

f

o r d e d w a s b i a s e d a g a i n s t h i m

. H o w e v e r

, t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t h e l d t h a t “ c a s e l a w s h o w s

t h a t w h e r e a p l a i n t i f f f a i l s t o t a k e a d v a n t a g e o f t h e h e a r i n g s h e w a s p r o v i d e d

, h i s p r e

d e p r i v a t i o n d u e p r o c e s s c l a i m w i l l n o t s u r v i v e s u m m a r y j u d g m e n t o n t h e b a r e a l l e g a t i o n

t h a t b i a s i n f e c t e d o n e s t a g e o f h i s h e a r i n g s

. ” O c a s i o v

. C i a c h

, N o

. 1 7

- c v

- 7 5 5

, 2 0 1 9 W L

1 5 8 2 8 0

, a t * 5 ( E

. D

. P a

. J a n

. 1 0

, 2 0 1 9 )

. T h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t a l s o h e l d t h a t i t h a d t o “ a s s e s s

t h e c o n t e n t o f t h e n o t i c e p r o v i d e d t o P l a i n t i f f i n o r d e r t o d e t e r m i n e w h e t h e r h i s

o p p o r t u n i t y t o b e h e a r d w a s ‘ m e a n i n g f u l ’ u n d e r L o u d e r m i l l

. ” I d

. T h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t

1 Acco rdi ng to Ocasio ’ s deposit ion testimony, his attorney told him that he did not

have to attend the hearing because he was suspended.

2 Peterson a bst ained from voting

, and , as Mayor , Ciach could only vote if there

were a tie.4 a c k n o w l e d g e d t h a t t h e l e t t e r s n o t i f y i n g O c a s i o t h a t C i a c h w o u l d b e r e c o m m e n d i n g t o t h e

B o r o u g h C o u n c i l h i s t e r m i n a t i o n e x p l a i n e d i n d e t a i l t h e e v i d e n c e a g a i n s t h i m

. 3

3 Specifically, t he Feb ruary 17

, 2 016 letter from C iach recommende d Ocasio ’ s

reassign ment to De p uty Chie f because of the following issues : (1) “ Missing Camera

Syst em ; ” (2) “ Dan Smith ” ( the Fire Chief w ho allegedly resigned from the Borough

Council as a result of dur ess by Ocasio ) ; (3) “ Over Budget Payroll

, ” (4 )

“ Unexpla inable Administrative Pay ; ” ( 5 ) “ Question abl e Personnel

R e com mendations to Coun cil ; ” ( 6 ) an allegedly unautho riz ed “ Department

Evaluation Report ; ” an d ( 7) “ Collection of Funds to pr ovide Christmas G i fts to a

Juvenile Crime Victim ” (for which no ac c ounting was allegedl y provided) (A34

- A36 )

. See also O casio

, 2 019 WL 1582 80, at * 5 ( “ Defendant Ciach also testified t hat he typed

this letter, summarizing his conce r ns w ith Plaintiff Ocasio ’ s 2015 performance, on

Fe bruary 9, 2016 (the date located on the second page of the letter) then u pdate d the l etter

on F ebruary 1 7 th

. ” ( citing A31 ) )

. In a February 22, 2 016 letter, C iac h immediately

suspended Ocasio until the next Boro ugh Council meet ing :

As a direct result of y ou [sic] willful disrespect and disobedience o f a dire ct

request and order t o answer que stions regarding your authority to order our

vendor (Logan Technology , Tom W ill ard ) to lockout Members of Council,

De te ctive Ire y and my self from the police department, and your threatening

re sponse to the same by st ating “ Mike, yo u have 5 seco nd s to ge t a way

from me ” as w itnessed by Officers Van Horn, DeL u ise, Dougherty & Ire y;

yo u a re im mediately suspen ded until the next Council meeting by my

authority under the Bor ough Code as Mayor

.

(A38.) A n addendum le tter d a ted February 23, 2016 purporte d t o sum marize what had

occurred since Februa ry 18 and set forth additional charges for “ FA ILURE TO OB EY A

DIRECT ORDER / T HRE AT ENING SUP ERIOR ” and “ REMOVAL OF B OROUGH

PROP ERTY

. ” (A 4 0 .) Ac cording to Ciach, “ I am amen ding my F ebruary 17 th

recommenda tion to a re commendation to C ouncil that you be suspended with the i ntent

to terminate pending t he outcome of inves tigation. ” ( Id. ( “ I will recommend that the

s uspension with intent to te rminate be without pay. ” ) .) “ [T]he B o ro ugh P ublic Safety

Comm ittee will hold a Loudermill meetin g to receive my recommendations and p rovide

you an opportunity to res pond to them on FEBRUARY 23 rd at 4:30 p. m. in the Borough

Hall. ” ( A 41 .)

A Nove mber 1, 2016 lette r from the Chair of the Public Safet y Committee notified

O c asio that another Lo udermill hearing would be conducted on November 2, 20 16 at

4: 00 p

. m. “ The Pu blic Safety Com mittee will base its final disciplinary recommen dation

on the conclusions s et forth in the attached summary of the Buchan an Ingersoll5 H o w e v e r

, O c a s i o e s s e n t i a l l y c h a l l e n g e d “ t h e v a l i d i t y ” o f t h e a c c u s a t i o n s

. I d

. ( i n t e r n a l

q u o t a t i o n m a r k o m i t t e d ) ( q u o t i n g P l

. O p p

. a t 1 0 )

. I n r e s p o n s e t o t h i s c o n t e n t i o n

, t h e

D i s t r i c t C o u r t f o u n d

, a s a m a t t e r o f l a w

, t h a t “ t h e c o n t e n t o f t h e n o t i c e p l a i n t i f f r e c e i v e d

b e f o r e h i s p r e

- t e r m i n a t i o n L o u d e r m i l l h e a r i n g s t o o k p l a c e

— i t s v e r a c i t y a n d i t s

s p e c i f i c i t y

— i s m a t e r i a l t o w h e t h e r M r

. O c a s i o w a s p r o v i d e d s u f f

i c i e n t d u e p r o c e s s

. ” I d

.

a t * 6

. H a v i n g r e a c h e d t h i s l e g a l c o n c l u s i o n

, t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t u l t i m a t e l y r e j e c t e d

A p p e l l a n t s ’ a r g u m e n t t h a t t h e y a r e e n t i t l e d t o q u a l i f i e d i m m u n i t y

, r e a s o n i n g t h a t “ w h e r e

i t i s i n d i s p u t e w h e t h e r D e f e n d a n t s C i a c h a n d P e t e r s o n v i o l a t e d P l a i n t i f f ’ s r i g h t t o p r e

d e p r i v a t i o n p r o c e d u r a l d u e p r o c e s s

– i n c l u d i n g n o t i c e

– ‘ h a s b e e n c l e a r l y e s t a b l i s h e d f o r

m a n y y e a r s

, ’ w e f i n d t h a t D e f e n d a n t s a r e n o t e n t i t l e d t o q u a l i f i e d i m m u n i t y

. ” 4 I d

. a t * 7

( c i t a t i o n o m i t t e d ) ( q u o t i n g Y e l l a n d v

. A b i n g t o n H e i g h t s S c h

. D i s t

. , N o

. 3 : 1 6

- c v

- 2 0 8 0

,

2 0 1 8 W L 3 2 1 7 6 4 3

, a t * 9 ( M

. D

. P a

. J u l

. 2

, 2 0 1 8 ) )

.

I I

.

I t i s w e l l establishe d t h a t t h e q u a l i f i e d i m m u n i t y d o c t r i n e “ i s g u i d e d b y t w o

q u e s t i o n s : ( 1 ) d i d t h e g o v e r n m e n t a c t o r v i o l a t e a c o n s t i t u t i o n a l r i g h t ? a n d ( 2 ) w a s t h a t

inve stigation repor t ” (A50). See also O casio , 2019 WL 158280, at *3 (noting that Ocasio

c alled into que sti on investigation ’ s independence o n grounds of Ciach ’ s relationsh ip with

head investigator )

.

4 T he District Court also deni ed Defendants ’ motio n for summary judgment as to

O c asi o ’ s indiv idu al

- ca p acity claim that C iach and Pe terson conspir ed to depriv e h im of

procedural due process. It did g ran t th e summary judgment motion as to the remainin g

due process claim against Upland

. We further note tha t th e Dis trict Court p reviou sly

granted Defendants ’ moti on to dis mis s all official

- ca pacity claims

, th e Fir st Am endment

re taliation and Pennsylvania Whist l e blo wer Act claim s

, and c laims of consp ira cy to

v iolate the First Amendm ent and the Whist leblower Act. The onl y claims at issue on

appeal are t he individual

- capacity pro cedural due process count against Appe lla nts as

wel l as the in dividual

- capacity cla im against them for cons piracy to violate O c asi o ’ s

p rocedural du e proce ss rights.6 r i g h t ‘ c l e a r l y e s t a b l i s h e d ’ a t t h e t i m e o f t h e c h a l l e n g e d conduc t ? ” B a l o g a v

. P i t t s t o n A r e a

S c h

. D i s t

. , 9 2 7 F

. 3 d 7 4 2

, 7 6 2 ( 3 d C i r

. 2 0 1 9 ) ( c i t i n g D o u g h e r t y v

. S c h

. D i s t

. o f P h i l a

. , 7 7 2

F

. 3 d 9 7 9

, 9 8 6 ( 3 d C i r

. 2 0 1 4 ) )

. O c a s i o c h a l l e n g e s o u r j u r i s d i c t i o n o v e r t h i s a p p e a l

. 5

H o w e v e r

, w e h a v e a p p e l l a t e j u r i s d i c t i o n o v e r a d e n i a l o f q u a l i f i e d i m m u n i t y t h a t r e s t s o n

a n i s s u e o f l a w a s o p p o s e d t o a f a c t u a l d i s p u t e

. S e e

, e

. g

. , M a m m a r o v

. N

. J

. D i v

. o f C h i l d

P r o t e c t i o n & P e r m a n e n c y

, 8 1 4 F

. 3 d 1 6 4

, 1 6 8 ( 3 d C i r

. 2 0 1 6 )

. A c c o r d i n g l y

, “ w e l a c k

j u r i s d i c t i o n t o c o n s i d e r w h e t h e r t h e d i s t r i c t c o u r t c o r r e c t l y i d e n t i f i e d t h e s e t o f f a c t s t h a t

t h e s u m m a r y j u d g m e n t r e c o r d i s s u f f

i c i e n t t o p r o v e

. ” Z i c c a r d i v

. C i t y o f P h i l a

. , 2 8 8 F

. 3 d

5 7

, 6 1 ( 3 d C i r

. 2 0 0 2 ) ( f o o t n o t e o m i t t e d ) ( c i t i n g E d d y v

. V

. I

. W a t e r & P o w e r A u t h

. , 2 5 6

F

. 3 d 2 0 4

, 2 0 8 ( 3 d C i r

. 2 0 0 1 ) )

. “ [ B ] u t w e p o s s e s s j u r i s d i c t i o n t o r e v i e w w h e t h e r t h e s e t o f

f

a c t s i d e n t i f i e d b y t h e d i s t r i c t c o u r t i s s u f f

i c i e n t t o e s t a b l i s h a v i o l a t i o n o f a c l e a r l y

e s t a b l i s h e d c o n s t i t u t i o n a l r i g h t

. ” I d

. ( f o o t n o t e o m i t t e d ) ( c i t i n g E d d y

, 2 5 6 F

. 3 d a t 2 0 8 )

.

T h i s a p p e a l i m p l i c a t e s t h e f u n d a m e n t a l l e g a l q u e s t i on of whe ther the District

Court identified the c o r r e c t l e g a l p r i n c i p l e s

. W e a c c e p t f o r p u r p o s e s o f t h i s a p p e a l t h a t

t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t c o r r e c t l y s e t f o r t h t h e “ f a c t s t h a t t h e s u m m a r y j u d g m e n t r e c o r d i s

s u f f

i c i e n t t o prov e

. ” T h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t h e l d t h a t “ [ h ] e r e

, a l t h o u g h t h e l e t t e r s n o t i f y i n g

D e f e n d a n t C i a c h w o u l d b e r e c o m m e n d i n g t o t h e c o u n c i l t h a t h e b e t e r m i n a t e d a s P o l i c e

C h i e f e x p l a i n e d i n d e t a i l t h e e v i d e n c e a g a i n s t p l a i n t i f f

, ” t h e r e w a s n o b a s i s f o r C i a c h ’ s

c l a i m s a g a i n s t O c a s i o ( s p e c i f i c a l l y h i s c l a i m s t h a t O c a s i o w a s “ O v e r B u d g e t w i t h

P a y r o l l

, ” a n d h a d “ U n e x p l a i n a b l e A d m i n i s t r a t i v e P a y ” )

, a n d “ ‘ C i a c h a d m i t t e d t h a t t h e

5 The D istrict Court had subj ect matter jurisdiction over this 42 U.S.C. § 1983

action pursuant t o 28 U.S.C. § 1331.7 2 0 1 5 D e p a r t m e n t E v a l u a t i o n R e p o r t w h i c h h e c l a i m e d w a s w r o n g f u l l y a u t h o r i z e d b y

p l a i n t i f f

. . . w a s a t o t a l u n t r u t h

. ’ ” O c a s i o

, 2 0 1 9 W L 1 5 8 2 8 0

, a t * 5 ( q u o t i n g P l

. O p p

. a t

1 0 )

. A c c o r d i n g t o t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t

, “ t h e c o n t e n t o f t h e n o t i c e w a s ‘ f r a u d u l e n t ’ a n d m e r e

p r e t e x t f o r D e f e n d a n t s C i a c h ’ s a n d P e t e r s o n ’ s r e t a l i a t o r y a n d d i s c r i m i n a t o r y m o t i v e s t o

t e r m i n a t e h i m

. ” I d

. W e a s k w h e t h e r t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t “ e r r e d w h e n i t a p p l i e d [ t o t h i s s e t

o f f a c t s ] t h e w r o n g [ l e g a l ] s t a n d a r d b y a d d i n g a n e l e m e n t t o t h e d u e p r o c e s s a n a l y s i s t h a t

n e i t h e r t h e U

. S

. S u p r e m e C o u r t n o r t h e C o u r t o f A p p e a l s f o r t h e T h i r d C i r c u i t h a s e v e r

r e q u i r e d

. ” ( A p p e l l a n t s ’ R e p l y B r i e f a t 1 ( c i t i n g O c a s i o

, 2 0 1 9 W L 1 5 8 2 8 0

, a t * 5

- * 6 )

. )

W e a n s w e r t h i s q u e s t i o n i n t h e a f f

i r m a t i v e

, c o n c l u d i n g t h a t t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t c o m m i t t e d

a n e r r o r o f l a w b y ( 1 ) a d o p t i n g a “ v e r a c i t y / v a l i d i t y ” r e q u i r e m e n t i n assessing w h e t h e r t h e

c o n t e n t o f t h e l e t t e r s d e n i e d O c a s i o a m e a n i n g f u l o p p o r t u n i t y t o b e h e a r d u n d e r

L o u d e r m i l l a n d ( 2 ) h o l d i n g t h a t t h i s e l e m e n t w a s c l e a r l y e s t a b l i s h e d w h e n O c a s i o ’ s p r e

t e r m i n a t i o n p r o c e s s t o o k p l a c e

. S e e

, e

. g

. , Z i c c a r d i

, 2 8 8 F

. 3 d a t 6 3 ( s t a t i n g t h a t C o u r t h a d

a p p e l l a t e j u r i s d i c t i o n t o c o n s i d e r a r g u m e n t t h a t p l a i n t i f f i s r e q u i r e d t o s h o w d e f e n d a n t s

a c t e d w i t h s u b j e c t i v e d e l i b e r a t e i n d i f f

e r e n c e a n d t h a t d i s t r i c t c o u r t d i d n o t a p p l y c o r r e c t

s t a n d a r d )

.

I I I

.

I t i s u n d i s p u t e d t h a t a “ t e n u r e d p u b l i c e m p l o y e e i s e n t i t l e d t o o r a l o r w r i t t e n n o t i c e

o f t h e c h a r g e s a g a i n s t h i m

, a n e x p l a n a t i o n o f t h e e m p l o y e r ’ s e v i d e n c e

, a n d a n

o p p o r t u n i t y t o p r e s e n t h i s s i d e o f t h e s t o r y

. ” L o u d e r m i l l

, 4 7 0 U

. S

. a t 5 4 6 ( c i t i n g A r n e t t

v

. K e n n e d y

, 4 1 6 U

. S

. 1 3 4

, 1 7 0

- 7 1 ( 1 9 7 4 ) ( o p i n i o n o f P o w e l l

, J

. ) ; i d

. a t 1 9 5

- 9 6 ( opinion

o f W h i t e

, J

. ) )

. “ [ A ] s i n a [ s i c ] q u a n o n o f a m e a n i n g f u l h e a r i n g i s a s u f f

i c i e n t e x p l a n a t i o n8 o f t h e e m p l o y e r ’ s e v i d e n c e t o p e r m i t a m e a n i n g f u l r e s p o n s e

. ” F r a t e r n a l O r d e r o f P o l i c e

L o d g e N o

. 5 v

. T u c k e r

, 8 6 8 F

. 2 d 7 4

, 8 0 ( 3 d C i r

. 1 9 8 9 )

. I n T u c k e r

, t h e d i s t r i c t c o u r t

f

o u n d t h a t t h e p l a i n t i f f p o l i c e o f f

i c e r s

, b e f o r e t h e y w e r e d i s c h a r g e d f o r f a i l i n g t o o b e y a n

o r d e r t o u n d e r g o d r u g t e s t i n g

, w e r e i n f o r m e d t h a t t h e r e w a s a c o m p l a i n t o f d r u g u s e

i n v o l v i n g p o l i c e o f f

i c e r s b u t w e r e n o t t o l d a n y t h i n g s p e c i f i c a b o u t t h e d r u g u s e

a l l e g a t i o n s b e i n g i n v e s t i g a t e d o r t h e e v i d e n c e r e g a r d i n g t h e a l l e g a t i o n s

. I d

. “ W i t h o u t

t h i s i n f o r m a t i o n p l a i n t i f fs a n d t h e i r a t t o r n e y s

, e v e n a s s u m i n g t h e y w e r e a f f

o r d e d t h e

o p p o r t u n i t y t o t e l l p l a i n t i f f

s ’ s i d e o f t h e s t o r y

, h a d n o o p p o r t u n i t y t o e x p l a i n o r r e b u t t h e

e v i d e n c e g i v i n g r i s e t o t h e ‘ r e a s o n a b l e s u s p i c i o n ’ o f o n

- d u t y d r u g u s e

. ” I d

. W e

a c c o r d i n g l y h e l d t h a t “ t h e f a i l u r e t o a f f

o r d p l a i n t i f f s s u c h a n o p p o r t u n i t y p r i o r t o t h e

d e p r i v a t i o n o f t h e i r p r o p e r t y i n t e r e s t s i n t h e i r j o b s c o n s t i t u t e d a d e n i a l o f t h e i r r i g h t t o

p r o c e d u r a l d u e p r o c e s s

. ” I d

.

E c h o i n g t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t

, O c a s i o a c k n o w l e d g e s t h a t “ t h e l e t t e r s n o t i f y i n g

A p p e l l e e t h a t D e f e n d a n t C i a c h w o u l d b e r e c o m m e n d i n g t o t h e c o u n c i l t h a t O c a s i o b e

t e r m i n a t e d a s P o l i c e C h i e f e x p l a i n e d i n d e t a i l t h e e v i d e n c e a g a i n s t p l a i n t i f f

. ” ( A p p e l l e e ’ s

B r i e f a t 9

. ) P u r p o r t i n g t o a p p l y t h e L o u d e r m i l l f r a m e w o r k

, t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t a n d O c a s i o

n e v e r t h e l e s s g o t o o f a r b y i n d i c a t i n g t h a t t h e v e r a c i t y o r v a l i d i t y o f t h e p r e

- t e r m i n a t i o n

n o t i c e ’ s description o f t h e e m p l o y e r ’ s e v i d e n c e s h o u l d b e c o n s i d e r e d i n d e c i d i n g w h e t h e r

t h e n o t i c e ’ s c o n t e n t p r o v i d e s t h e e m p l o y e e w i t h a m e a n i n g f u l o p p o r t u n i t y t o p r e s e n t h i s

o r h e r s i d e o f t h e s t o r y

. T h e y d o n o t c i t e t o a n y c a s e l a w e s t a b l i s h i n g t h a t t h e n o t i c e m u s t

satisfy s o m e s o r t o f v e r a c i t y o r v a l i d i t y r e q u i r e m e n t

— o r a n y r e q u i r e m e n t t h a t t h e n o t i c e

m u s t s e t f o r t h e x c u l p a t o r y e v i d e n c e o r p r e s e n t t h e e m p l o y e e ’ s s i d e o f t h e s t o r y

. O n t h e9 c o n t r a r y

, t h e p o l i c e o f f

i c e r s i n T u c k e r w e r e n o t t o l d “ ‘ a n y t h i n g s p e c i f i c ’ ” a b o u t t h e d r u g

u s e a l l e g a t i o n s o r t h e e v i d e n c e r e g a r d i n g t h o s e a l l e g a t i o n s

. T u c k e r

, 8 6 8 F

. 2 d a t 8 0

.

I n J e n n i n g s

- F o w l e r v

. C i t y o f S c r a n t o n

, w e l i k e w i s e d e t e r m i n e d t h a t t h e c h a r g e s

f

a i l e d t o d e s c r i b e t h e n a t u r e o f t h e e v i d e n c e s u p p o r t i n g t e r m i n a t i o n

. 6 8 0 F

. A p p ’ x 1 1 2

,

1 1 6 ( 3 d C i r

. 2 0 1 7 ) ( “ H e r e

, t h e s e c o n d a n d t h i r d c h a r g e s d i d n o t p r o v i d e t h e r e q u i s i t e

d e s c r i p t i o n : b o t h u s e d b o i l e r p l a t e l a n g u a g e t o a c c u s e J e n n i n g s

- F o w l e r o f ‘ [ t ] h e f t

, w i l l f u l

d e s t r u c t i o n

, w i l l f u l d e f a c e m e n t o r w i l l f u l m i s u s e o f C i t y P r o p e r t y [

, ] ’ a n d ‘ i n t e n t i o n a l l y

f

a l s i f y i n g o r a l t e r i n g a n y C i t y R e c o r d o r r e p o r t [

. ] ’ ” ( a l t e r a t i o n s i n o r i g i n a l ) )

. W h i l e t h i s

n o n

- p r e c e d e n t i a l d e c i s i o n d i d r e f e r t o d e f e n d a n t s ’ “ e x p l i c i t l i e

, ” t h e i r l i e d e n i e d t h e

e x i s t e n c e o f e v i d e n c e s u p p o r t i n g t e r m i n a t i o n

, t h e r e b y h i n d e r i n g t h e p l a i n t i f f ’ s

o p p o r t u n i t y t o r e s p o n d t o t h e e v i d e n c e a g a i n s t h i m

. I d

. ( “ F u r t h e r

, J e n n i n g s

- F o w l e r

s p e c i f i c a l l y a s k e d w h e t h e r a n y v i d e o o r p h o t o g r a p h i c e v i d e n c e e x i s t e d t o s u p p o r t t h e s e

c h a r g e s a n d w a s f a l s e l y t o l d t h a t i t d i d n o t

. ” )

. S i m i l a r l y

, i n Y e l l a n d

, t h e d i s t r i c t j u d g e

e x p l a i n e d t h a t “ c h a r g e s t h a t d o n o t c o n t a i n t h e r e q u i s i t e d e s c r i p t i o n a n d t h a t s i m p l y u s e

b o i l e r p l a t e l a n g u a g e a r e n o t s u f f

i c i e n t

. ” Y e l l a n d

, 2 0 1 8 W L 3 2 1 7 6 4 3

, a t * 8 ( c i t i n g

J e n n i n g s

- F o w l e r

, 6 8 0 F

. A p p ’ x a t 1 1 6 ) ( f u r t h e r o b s e r v i n g t h a t n o t i c e w a s p a r t i c u l a r l y

i m p o r t a n t g i v e n a b s e n c e o f a n y n e g a t i v e e v a l u a t i o n s o r i n c i d e n t s i n p a s t )

. T h e Y e l l a n d

c o u r t i d e n t i f i e d g e n u i n e i s s u e s o f m a t e r i a l f a c t a s t o w h e t h e r “ t h e p l a i n t i f f h a d n o t i c e o f

a l l o f t h e sp ecific g r o u n d s a n d e v i d e n c e r e g a r d i n g h i s s u s p e n s i o n w i t h p a y a n d

, a s a

r e s u l t

, w h e t h e r h e w a s g i v e n a c h a n c e t o t e l l h i s f u l l s i d e o f t h e s t o r y a s t o e a c h s p e c i f i c

c h a r g e

. ” I d

.

I n t h e e n d

, t h e v e r a c i t y o r v a l i d i t y o f t h e c h a r g e s a n d e v i d e n c e a g a i n s t O c a s i o10 c o u l d h a v e b e e n c o n s i d e r e d a t t h e L o u d e r m i l l h e a r i n g s t h e m s e l v e s

. “ [ T h e p r e

t e r m i n a t i o n h e a r i n g ] s h o u l d b e a n i n i t i a l c h e c k a g a i n s t m i s t a k e n d e c i s i o n s

— e s s e n t i a l l y

, a

d e t e r m i n a t i o n o f w h e t h e r t h e r e a r e r e a s o n a b l e g r o u n d s t o b e l i e v e t h a t t h e c h a r g e s a g a i n s t

t h e e m p l o y e e a r e t r u e a n d s u p p o r t t h e p r o p o s e d a c t i o n

. ” L o u d e r m i l l

, 4 7 0 U

. S

. a t 5 4 5

- 4 6

( c i t i n g B e l l v

. B u r s o n

, 4 0 2 U

. S

. 5 3 5

, 5 4 0 ( 1 9 7 1 ) )

. I n t h i s c a s e

, t h e l e t t e r s O c a s i o

r e c e i v e d d i d n o t d e p r i v e O c a s i o o f a m e a n i n g f u l o p p o r t u n i t y t o p r e s e n t h i s s i d e o f t h e

s t o r y a t t w o subsequent h e a r i n g s

. F o r i n s t a n c e

, h e c o u l d h a v e t h e n e x p l a i n e d h o w t h e r e

w a s n o b a s i s f o r C i a c h ’ s a l l e g a t i o n s a g a i n s t h i m r e g a r d i n g t h e b u d g e t o r h o w C i a c h a n d

P e t e r s o n w e r e r e a l l y m o t i v a t e d b y r a c i s m

. H o w e v e r

, O c a s i o d i d n o t a t t e n d t h e

L o u d e r m i l l h e a r i n g s ( a n d h e a l s o d i d n o t a t t e n d t h e s u b s e q u e n t B o r o u g h C o u n c i l s e s s i o n

t h a t v o t e d t o t e r m i n a t e h i s e m p l o y m e n t )

. “ ‘ I n o r d e r t o s t a t e a c l a i m f o r f a i l u r e t o p r o v i d e

d u e p r o c e s s

, a p l a i n t i f f m u s t h a v e t a k e n a d v a n t a g e o f t h e p r o c e s s e s t h a t a r e a v a i l a b l e t o

h i m o r h e r

, u n l e s s t h o s e p r o c e s s e s a r e u n a v a i l a b l e o r p a t e n t l y i n a d e q u a t e

. ’ ” O c a s i o

, 2 0 1 9

W L 1 5 8 2 8 0

, a t * 4 ( q u o t i n g A l v i n v

. S u z u k i

, 2 2 7 F

. 3 d 1 0 7

, 1 1 6 ( 3 d C i r

. 2 0 0 0 ) )

. B e c a u s e

O c a s i o “ f a i l [ e d ] t o t a k e a d v a n t a g e o f t h e h e a r i n g s h e w a s p r o v i d e d

, h i s p r e

- d e p r i v a t i o n

d u e p r o c e s s c l a i m w i l l n o t s u r v i v e s u m m a r y j u d g m e n t o n t h e b a r e a l l e g a t i o n t h a t b i a s

i n f e c t e d o n e s t a g e o f h i s h e a r i n g s

. ” I d

. a t * 5

.

A c c o r d i n g l y

, w e c o n c l u d e t h a t t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t w a s w r o n g a s a m a t t e r o f l a w t o

a d o p t a “ v e r a c i t y / v a l i d i t y ” r e q u i r e m e n t i n “ a s s e s s [ i n g ] t h e c o n t e n t o f t h e n o t i c e p r o v i d e d

t o P l a i n t i f f i n o r d e r t o d e t e r m i n e w h e t h e r h i s o p p o r t u n i t y t o b e h e a r d w a s ‘ m e a n i n g f u l ’

u n d e r L o u d e r m i l l

, ” i d

. I n a n y e v e n t

, a n y s u c h r e q u i r e m e n t w a s n o t c l e a r l y e s t a b l i s h e d a t

t h e t i m e t h a t t h e p r e

- t e r m i n a t i o n process o c c u r r e d i n t h i s c a s e ( i n f a c t

, b o t h J e n n i n g s

-11 F o w l e r a n d Y e l l a n d w e r e d e c i d e d a f t e r O c a s i o w a s t e r m i n a t e d

, J e n n i n g s

- F o w l e r i s a n o n

p r e c e d e n t i a l d i s p o s i t i o n

, a n d Y e l l a n d i s a d i s t r i c t c o u r t o p i n i o n )

. 6 S e e

, e

. g

. , M a m m a r o

,

8 1 4 F

. 3 d a t 1 7 0 n

. 2

.

I V

.

F o r t h e f o r e g o i n g r e a s o n s

, w e w i l l v a c a t e t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t ’ s o r d e r t o t h e e x t e n t

t h a t i t d e n i e d D e f e n d a n t s ’ m o t i o n f o r s u m m a r y j u d g m e n t a s t o t h e p r o c e d u r a l d u e p r o c e s s

a n d r e l a t e d c o n s p i r a c y c l a i m s a g a i n s t A p p e l l a n t s

. W e w i l l r e m a n d w i t h i n s t r u c t i o n s f o r

t h e D i s t r i c t C o u r t t o g r a n t t h e s u m m a r y j u d g m e n t m o t i o n a s t o t h o s e c l a i m s

— w i t h o u t

p r e j u d i c e t o a n y r i g h t s o r r e m e d i e s O c a s i o m a y p o s s e s s u n d e r s t a t e l a w

.

6 We als o agree with Appellants that Ocasio did not have a valid conspiracy claim

relating to the deprivation of his due process ri ghts because they did not inf ringe such

right s

. Based on our ruling , and that of the District Court when ruling on the motion to

dismiss, no claims remain pending in his case.