Opinion ID: 4015702
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Smith Cross-Appeal

Text: Smith cross-appeals the district court’s application of the after-acquired evidence doctrine to limit her damages. The after-acquired evidence doctrine applies when an employee is fired for an unlawful reason but the employer later learns of other conduct that, by itself, would have resulted in discharge had it come to the employer’s attention, and it limits the employee’s damages to the period of time “from the date of the unlawful discharge to the date the new information was discovered.” McKennon v. Nashville Banner Pub. Co., 513 U.S. 352, 362 (1995). It is the employer’s burden to prove that it would have fired the employee upon discovery of the evidence. E.E.O.C. v. Dial Corp., 469 F.3d 735, 745 (8th Cir. 2006). The employer must show “that the wrongdoing was of such severity that the employee in fact would have been terminated on those grounds alone if the employer had known of it.” McKennon, 413 U.S. at 362–63. Here, the district court found Thomas Smith was jailed until July 20, 2011, and ASB would have fired him for missing 8 days of work in a twelve-month period under its no-fault attendance policy. Smith contends the district court clearly erred in finding that Thomas Smith was not released from jail until July 20, 2011. In finding that Thomas Smith was not released until July 20, 2011, the district court relied on Jamie Smith’s testimony about Exhibit D-22, an exhibit ASB asserts are court records. Because the court found Exhibit D-22 was not properly authenticated, however, the court did not admit the exhibit. Referring to Exhibit D-22, ASB’s attorney asked Jamie Smith: “Am I reading it right? Bond—surety bond posted on July 20, 2011?” Jamie Smith testified: “Yes, it does state that.” The parties then entered into the following stipulation: “The parties further agree and stipulate that D-22 is withdrawn, and all copies of D-22 will be sealed and/or returned to plaintiff. Plaintiff Jamie Smith’s testimony relating to the dates of Mr. Smith’s incarceration in July of 2011 is admissible.” The district court acknowledged that Smith “presented evidence that Mr. Smith acquired the money for bond on July 19 -13- and was released on July 19”—Exhibit P-489—but found that “a contemporaneously prepared court record is entitled to more weight than Ms. Smith’s memory of the event, particularly in light of the very technical nature of the information, making it less likely to be accurately remembered years later.” Smith v. AS Am., Inc., 85 F.Supp.3d 1046, 1057 (W.D. Mo. 2015). Neither party disputes it was ASB’s burden to prove it would have fired Thomas Smith based on the number of absences he would have accrued from being jailed. The only evidence in the record regarding the dates of Thomas Smith’s detention in jail that either party points us to is Exhibit P-48 and Jamie Smith’s testimony about both that exhibit and ASB’s Exhibit D-22. The parties did stipulate that “Plaintiff Jamie Smith’s testimony relating to the dates of Mr. Smith’s incarceration in July of 2011 is admissible.” The court then characterized Jamie Smith’s testimony about Exhibit D-22 as being based on a “contemporaneously prepared court record.” But her testimony was less than clear about what information Exhibit D-22 offered, because there is nothing in Jamie Smith’s testimony or elsewhere that explains what is meant by a “surety bond” being “posted.” For example, we can find no evidence in the record that a surety bond is posted on the same day an inmate is released, either in the county where Thomas Smith was detained or as a general matter. The court gave Jamie Smith’s limited testimony about Exhibit D-22 “more weight than Ms. Smith’s memory of the event” and overlooked the fact that no one had defined the key terms on that exhibit. The court also gave the testimony about Exhibit D-22, a withdrawn exhibit, more weight than Exhibit P-48, an admitted exhibit. Exhibit P-48, in combination with other portions of Jamie Smith’s testimony, placed Thomas Smith’s release date as one day prior on July 19, 2011. Under these circumstances, we conclude that the district court’s 9 When asked what Exhibit P-48 was, Jamie Smith testified: “That would be the form that we had to fill out when I bonded him out.” She further testified she signed the form on the date that Thomas Smith was released and that the date on the form was July 19, 2011. -14- finding that ASB met its burden to prove that Thomas Smith was released from jail on July 20, 2011, was clearly erroneous. See Dial Corp., 469 F.3d at 745 (remanding on issue of back pay because employer did not meet its burden of proving employee would have been fired based on the after acquired-evidence doctrine). For the reasons stated, the judgment of the district court on ASB’s after-acquired evidence defense vacated and we remand this case for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. ______________________________ -15-