Opinion ID: 1475339
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Requested Direct Evidence/Burden of Proof Instruction

Text: Jung argues that the trial court erred in declining to give requested jury instructions to the following effect: (1) presentation of direct evidence of discrimination shifts the burden of proof to the University to prove that he would have received a failing grade for the comprehensive examination notwithstanding the views of Dr. East; and (2) the jury could find for him on the discrimination claims if they disbelieved the University's reasons for the failing grade. The University argues in response that the trial court properly instructed the jury on burden of proof and other controlling legal principles in the context of this case. We consider each of these arguments in turn. Jung points to evidence that Dr. East, one of the committee members who graded his last examination, harbored views to the effect that Korean students tended to engage in rote learning and to state the material verbatim on examination without analysis or responsiveness to the question. Dr. East admitted that, at some unspecified times, he had expressed such views to Professors Finnemore, Goldeiger, and Nau (all of whom were on the committee grading Jung's comprehensive examinations) and to Professors Sell and Lebovic. Jung argues that this constitutes direct evidence of a discriminatory animus, which if credited by the jury, proved that unlawful discrimination was at least a motivating factor in the University's actions. Therefore, he argues, the trial court erred in declining to give an instruction that the burden of proof shifted to the University to prove that he would have received a failing grade on the comprehensive examination anyway, i.e., regardless of the views of Dr. East. The University argues that Jung failed to meet his burden to show that this was a direct evidence case and that, in any event, the court's instructions adequately covered the applicable law on burden of proof and pretext.
Generally a party is entitled to a jury instruction upon the theory of the case if there is sufficient evidence to support it. George Washington Univ. v. Waas, 648 A.2d 178, 183 (D.C.1994) (citing Wingfield v. Peoples Drug Store, Inc., 379 A.2d 685, 688 (D.C.1977)) (other citations omitted). The trial court has broad discretion in formulating jury instructions, `and its refusal to grant a request for a particular instruction is not a ground for reversal if the court's charge, considered as a whole, fairly and accurately states the applicable law.' Id. (quoting Psychiatric Inst. of Wash. v. Allen, 509 A.2d 619, 625 (D.C.1986)) (other citation omitted). Even if the court presents the instruction in a more general way, so long as it fully informs the jury on the law, the refusal to give the requested instruction does not warrant reversal. Mark Keshishian & Sons, Inc. v. Washington Square, Inc., 414 A.2d 834, 841 (D.C.1980) (citing Wingfield, 379 A.2d at 689) (other citation omitted). The D.C. Human Rights Act provides that it shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice for an educational institution: (1) To deny, restrict, or to abridge or condition the use of, or access to, any of its facilities and services to any person otherwise qualified, wholly or partially, for a discriminatory reason, based upon the race, color, ... [or] national origin... of any individual. D.C.Code § 1-2520 (1999). [9] Although a claim of discrimination under the Human Rights Act is generally considered under the three-part burden-shifting test set forth in McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green, 411 U.S. 792, 93 S.Ct. 1817, 36 L.Ed.2d 668 (1973), [10] that test is deemed inappropriate when a plaintiff offers direct evidence of discrimination. Hollins, supra note 9, 760 A.2d at 574. Where a plaintiff offers direct evidence of discrimination, the court uses a mixed motives test, outlined in Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins, 490 U.S. 228, 109 S.Ct. 1775, 104 L.Ed.2d 268 (1989), which requires the plaintiff to show that discrimination was a motivating factor for any employment practice, even though other factors also motivated the practice. Hollins, 760 A.2d at 575 (citation omitted). Under Price Waterhouse, upon presentation of direct evidence of discrimination, the burden of persuasion shifts to the employer to demonstrate by a preponderance of the evidence that it would have made the same decision absent the impermissible motive. 490 U.S. at 252-53, 258, 109 S.Ct. 1775. [11] To warrant treatment under Price Waterhouse, a plaintiff claiming direct evidence of discrimination has a heavy burden, for not every comment reflecting discriminatory attitudes will support an inference that it was a factor motivating the adverse decision. Hollins, supra, 760 A.2d at 575. Stray remarks in the workplace and statements by decision makers that are unrelated to the decision making process are not considered sufficient to satisfy the direct evidence burden. Id. (citing Price Waterhouse, 490 U.S. at 277, 109 S.Ct. 1775) (O'Connor, J., concurring). Such statements may be too attenuated because not directed at the plaintiff. Id. (citation omitted). Therefore, the plaintiff `must present evidence of conduct or statements by persons involved in the decision making process that may be viewed as directly reflecting the alleged discriminatory attitude ... sufficient to permit the factfinder to infer that that [ the ] attitude was more likely than not a motivating factor in [ the alleged adverse action ].' Id. (citations omitted) (emphasis in original).
Dr. East's generalized comments about Korean students are of the type suggesting a biased attitude based on the students' ethnicity or national origin. See e.g., Price Waterhouse, supra, 490 U.S. at 236, 109 S.Ct. 1775 (Partner's repeated comments to the effect that women could not be considered as partnership candidates or were not capable of functioning as senior managers are direct evidence of discrimination.); Haynes v. W.C. Caye & Co., Inc., 52 F.3d 928, 930 (11th Cir.1995) (Statements that women are not tough enough to do the job or that it would require a man to do the job are classic examples of direct evidence of discrimination.). Similar to the comments made in Price Waterhouse and Haynes, which showed a gender-based assessment of the plaintiffs' capabilities, it is fair to say that Dr. East's comments here reflect a generalized assessment of the analytical abilities of Korean students based upon nationality. However, such a showing does not end our inquiry into whether there is direct evidence of discrimination. Simply making such a statement in the workplace is not enough; there must be a causal link between the statements and the conduct about which the complaint is made. Hollins, supra note 9, 760 A.2d at 575. `Absent a causal link between the references and the conduct complained of, such epithets become stray remarks that cannot support a discrimination verdict.' Id. (quoting Boyd v. State Farm Ins. Co., 158 F.3d 326, 330 (5th Cir.1998)) (other citation omitted). In this case, there must be some evidence of a link between Dr. East's statements and the decisional process leading to Jung's failure of the last comprehensive examination that he took. However, missing from this record is any evidence showing that the statements were made at or near the time of the examination and the adverse results or that they were made in connection with the decisional process. Although Dr. East was one of the decision makers, there was no showing that his statements were temporally related or otherwise connected to the decisional process. More particularly, there is no evidence that his sentiments influenced or were shared by any of the three other members of the evaluation committee, all of whom gave Jung a failing grade. Discriminatory remarks which are unrelated to the decisional process, even when uttered by a decision maker, are insufficient to support a claim of discrimination. Hong v. Children's Mem'l Hosp., 993 F.2d 1257, 1266 (7th Cir.1993) (citing Smith v. Firestone Tire & Rubber Co., 875 F.2d 1325, 1330 (7th Cir.1989)); [12] see also Smith v. Leggett Wire Co., 220 F.3d 752, 760 (6th Cir.2000) (noting that stray racial comments long before termination too tenuous to be relevant to show racial motive for the employees' termination). In this case, since there was no evidence showing a temporal nexus or a causal link between the statements and the grading of Jung's examination, Jung failed to meet his burden of establishing direct evidence of discrimination sufficient to support the requested direct evidence/burden-shifting instruction. See Hollins, supra, 760 A.2d at 574-75. Therefore, we find no error in this regard.