Opinion ID: 74381
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Restoration of Rank Claims

Text: The final jury verdicts Defendants challenge pertain to the restoration of rank claims of Sergeant Charles Alexander and Corporal Robert Upshaw. Both Alexander and Upshaw voluntarily accepted 57 reductions in rank in order to be transferred out of the Jail. Both accepted demotions to the position of deputy and were transferred to the Court Services Division prior to the Barrett regime.37 They argued they were treated differently with regard to the restoration of their rank than was Sergeant Barbara Woodward, a black officer, who also voluntarily surrendered her rank in order to be transferred from the Jail but later had her rank restored. As Sheriff Barrett argued, however, Woodward was not similarly situated to Alexander and Upshaw because she left the Jail due to a medical condition and contested her loss of rank with the Grievance Review Committee, which then recommended that she be restored to the rank of sergeant. Neither Alexander nor Upshaw sought relief for giving up their rank, even though they knew of the existence of the Grievance Review Committee. In addition, both Alexander and Upshaw failed to present any evidence showing that Sheriff Barrett had any personal involvement in the failure to have their ranks restored. On this record, we conclude, that no reasonable jury could find the failure of Sheriff Barrett to restore the ranks of Alexander and Upshaw was the result of race-based discrimination. Defendants are, therefore, entitled to judgment as a matter of law on these claims.