Opinion ID: 3011456
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Merits Issues

Text: The District Court held that even if plaintiffs' ranks on the promotion list were lowered in retaliation for their exercise of First Amendment rights, there could be no recovery on their failure to promote claim. In the Court's view, it is impossible for the plaintiffs to prove that they would have been promoted in the absence of the alleged retaliation because there is no way to prove, assuming the alleged retaliation had not occurred, (1) how many, if any, _________________________________________________________________ 2. Although in October 1996 the PLRB found that the City had violated the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Act with regard to plaintiffs Kerrigan and Suppan (but not plaintiffs Dieter and Bowser), on appeal to the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, the case was dismissed as moot because the promotion lists had expired and no promotions had been made from the lists during their effective period. (Brief for defendants Daddona et al., Att. 2). 6 promotions would have been made from the list; and (2) whether plaintiffs would have ranked high enough to get promoted. Because no causal connection can be shown between the retaliatory ranking and the absence of promotion, the Court held that the plaintiffs have suffered no actionable deprivation of rights. We conclude that summary judgment was inappropriately entered against the plaintiffs for two independent reasons. First, if the defendants deliberately lowered the plaintiffs' scores because of their exercise of their First Amendment rights, a constitutional violation occurred at that time for which relief may be appropriate even if the plaintiffs are not entitled to relief on their failure to promote claim. Second, there is evidence in the record that could support an award of compensation on plaintiffs' failure to promote claim.