Opinion ID: 381330
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Gray-the-Official-County-Representative Versus Gray-the-Treasurer

Text: 36 Appellant also argues that even if, in some circumstances, it is proper to hold a county liable for the wrongful actions of its official under Monell, it is a violation of due process to do so when the county itself was not actually named as a defendant in the action. Appellant by no means disputes that Hartsell Gray was named as a defendant in his official capacity; rather, he seems to argue that the mere naming of the official treasurer of the county as a defendant does not serve to make the county itself a party to the action. As noted above, this argument attempts to distinguish between Gray as a Treasurer and Gray as an official representative of Harris County. Since the former Gray cannot satisfy the back pay award from the County Treasury without violating the due process rights of the latter Gray (the county), it is argued, the liability must disappear. 37 Plaintiffs failed to name Harris County as a defendant in its original complaint because, at the time that the complaint was filed, counties could not be held liable as persons under § 1983. See, e. g., Monroe v. Pape, supra. The script for this play had been written and was in dress rehearsal for decision when Monell caused the authors to reexamine the script before a complete rewriting. Although future plaintiffs can, and may be well-advised to, join the local government entity as a defendant in § 1983 actions, we cannot find that the failure to name Harris County expressly as a defendant in this action constituted a violation of due process. 38 Courts have long recognized that suits against members of government in their official capacity directly implicate the interests of the government itself. As early as 1828, the Supreme Court noted: 39 The claim upon the Governor is as a governor, he is sued, not by his name, but his title. The demand made upon him is not made personally, but officially. 40 The decree is pronounced not against the person, but the officer, and appeared to have been pronounced against the successor of the original defendant, as the appealed bond was executed by a different governor from him who filed the information. In such a case, where the chief magistrate of a State is sued, not by his name, but by his style of office, and the claim made upon him is entirely in his official character, we think that the State itself may be considered a party on the record. If the State is not a party, there is no party against whom a decree can be made. . . . This not being a proceeding against the thing, but against the person, a person capable of appearing as a defendant, against whom a decree can be pronounced, must be a party to the cause before a decree can be regularly pronounced. 41 Governor of Georgia v. Madrazo, 1 Pet. (26 U.S.) 110, 123-4, 7 L.Ed. 73 (1828) (emphasis added). 42 The widespread recognition that the government entity itself is the real party in interest in official capacity suits has, in the past, presented severe difficulty for courts faced with applying the person requirement in § 1983 suits. For example, the Second Circuit in its consideration of Monell v. Department of Social Services, 532 F.2d 259 (2nd Cir. 1976), rev'd, 436 U.S. 658, 98 S.Ct. 2018, 56 L.Ed.2d 611 (1978), held that since municipalities cannot be sued as persons under § 1983 and since suits against city officials in their official capacity were mere subterfuge for suits against the real party in interest, the city itself, then city officials could not be sued in their official capacity under § 1983. Id. at 266. On certiorari, the Supreme Court in Monell v. Department of Social Services, 436 U.S. 658, 98 S.Ct. 2018, 56 L.Ed.2d 611 (1978), specifically agreed with the Second Circuit's conclusion that suits against city officials in their official capacity were merely an alternative form of pleading a suit against the city; however, the Court concluded that both forms of suit were permissible under § 1983. In so doing, the Court expressly equated suits against officers in their official capacity with suits against the government: 43 Since official capacity suits generally represent only another way of pleading an action against an entity of which an officer is an agent . . . our holding today that local governments can be sued under § 1983 necessarily decides that local government officials sued in their official capacities are persons under § 1983 in those cases in which, as here, a local government would be suable in its own name. 44 Id. at 2036 n.55. 45 As a practical matter as well, Harris County has been fairly treated. Since the inception of this lawsuit, Harris County has been aware, at a minimum, that a former employee was seeking reinstatement-a remedy which by its nature could have implications only for the County. Pursuant to statute, Tex.Rev.Civ.Stat.Ann. art. 332c (Vernon 1973), all defendants in this action were represented by a county attorney. The County had both notice and opportunity to be heard, sufficient to comport with due process. We find, therefore, that the district court's assessment of damages against the county treasury-in light of Hartsell Gray having acted in his official capacity when he dismissed Van Ooteghem-did not constitute a violation of due process.