Opinion ID: 203106
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Procedure in the District Court

Text: On March 28, 2006, Gagliardi filed suit in the district court under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, claiming that Mayor Sullivan, the City, Commissioner Lawler, Secretary Kimball, and Governor Romney had infringed his constitutional rights to free speech and procedural due process. He averred, inter alia, that [t]he Board, members were fired for performing an oversight function required by federal law, and that Mayor Sullivan and DCS conspired to destroy the Board by interfering with the certification process. Gagliardi sought, inter alia, a declaration that the termination of the Board was unlawful, an injunction reinstating the Board and requiring Mayor Sullivan to assist it in achieving certification, and compensatory and punitive damages. Governor Romney, Secretary Kimball, and Commissioner Lawler moved jointly under Rule 12(b)(6) to dismiss Gagliardi's complaint for failure to state a claim on which relief could be granted. Neither Mayor Sullivan nor the City joined the motion. At the hearing on the motion, counsel for Governor Romney, Secretary Kimball, and Commissioner Lawler presented arguments, as did counsel for Gagliardi; counsel for Mayor Sullivan and the City was in attendance, but made no submissions and acknowledged that he was not obviously participating substantively in the discussions. . . . The district court dismissed all of Gagliardi's federal claimsnot only against Governor Romney, Secretary Kimball, and Commissioner Lawler, but also against Mayor Sullivan and the Cityand remanded the state claims to Massachusetts court. [5]