Opinion ID: 475309
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Merits of Title VII Claim

Text: 16 The district court found that Kennecott had not terminated Breneman because of her gender or in retaliation for her filing of a previous charge of sex discrimination. The court found, rather, that the principal reason that Quinn decided to discharge [Breneman] was because he concluded that she had not been truthful and that he could no longer trust her. 17 In an action under Title VII, the district court's conclusions regarding the success or failure of the plaintiff and defendant in meeting [their respective] burdens [of proof] are reviewed under the clearly erroneous test. Piva v. Xerox Corp., 654 F.2d 591, 594 (9th Cir.1981); see also Pullman-Standard v. Swint, 456 U.S. 273, 287-88, 102 S.Ct. 1781, 1789-90, 72 L.Ed.2d 66 (1982); Fed.R.Civ.P. 52(a). Under this standard, we accept the district court's findings unless we are left with the definite and firm conviction that the court made a mistake. Anderson v. City of Bessemer City, 470 U.S. 564, 105 S.Ct. 1504, 1511, 84 L.Ed.2d 518 (1985). 18 The district court concluded that Breneman had failed to show that Kennecott's proffered reason for the discharge was pretextual. As an initial matter, it does not appear that Breneman succeeded in making out even a prima facie case of sex discrimination because she offered no evidence that Kennecott had replaced her by a man. See Jones v. Los Angeles Community College District, 702 F.2d 203, 205 (9th Cir.1983). Even assuming, however, that Breneman was replaced by a man, she offered no persuasive evidence that the reason offered by Kennecott for her discharge--that Quinn thought she had lied to him, and decided he could no longer trust her--was pretextual. Breneman contends that Hamilton and Swingle supplied Quinn with negative reports about her, that Quinn took these reports into consideration in evaluating her performance, and that Quinn's tainted concern for her performance influenced his decision to terminate her. See Fadhl v. City and County of San Francisco, 741 F.2d 1163, 1165-66 (9th Cir.1984). The district court carefully evaluated Breneman's evidence and concluded that her discharge was unrelated to any animosity Hamilton and Swingle had towards her. We cannot say that this conclusion was clearly erroneous. 19 Breneman also contends that her discharge was in retaliation for her earlier EEOC charge. It does not appear that Breneman succeeded in making out a prima facie case of retaliation. See Wrighten v. Metropolitan Hospitals, Inc., 726 F.2d 1346, 1354-55 (9th Cir.1984); Cohen v. Fred Meyer, Inc., 686 F.2d 793, 796 (9th Cir.1982). Breneman's only supportive evidence is her own testimony that Hamilton's attitude toward her changed after he found out that she had filed a discrimination charge. Even assuming, however, that Breneman did succeed in making out a prima facie case of retaliation, she offered no evidence to prove that Quinn's reason for her discharge was pretextual. Thus, the district court did not clearly err in concluding that Breneman's discharge was not retaliatory. 20 AFFIRMED.