Opinion ID: 496702
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Jury Instructions on Intentional Discrimination

Text: 28 In instructing the jury on intentional discrimination, the district court used the McDonnell-Douglas framework, which we held applicable to jury trials in Loeb v. Textron, 600 F.2d 1003, (1st Cir.1979). See McDonnell-Douglas Corp. v. Greene, 411 U.S. 792, 93 S.Ct. 1817, 36 L.Ed.2d 668 (1973); see also Texas Dept. of Community Affairs v. Burdine, 450 U.S. 248, 101 S.Ct. 1089, 67 L.Ed.2d 207 (1981). The McDonnell-Douglas framework permits a plaintiff to prove intentional discrimination by introducing sufficient evidence to create a presumption of discrimination; in many cases the fact that the member of the protected class was treated differently from other similarly placed employees is enough. See McDonnell-Douglas, 411 U.S. at 802, 93 S.Ct. at 1824. The defendant then has a burden of production to rebut that inference by articulating a nondiscriminatory reason for its actions. Id. If the defendant cannot give a nondiscriminatory reason, the plaintiff prevails on the basis of the prima facie case. But if the defendant does articulate a nondiscriminatory reason, the plaintiff may prove intentional discrimination by demonstrating that the reason was a pretext, hiding the real discriminatory motive. Id., 411 U.S. at 804, 93 S.Ct. at 1825. 29 Although this framework was considered complicated and cumbersome when it was first used in McDonnell-Douglas, with repeated use courts have become more comfortable with it, both for their own use in ruling on Title VII claims and for the jury's use in ruling on intentional discrimination. See Loeb v. Textron, supra. It is a straightforward way of explaining how to consider whether there is intentional discrimination in situations where such discrimination is not likely to be overt. 30 Thus, the district court was correct in using the framework in the instructions to the jury. The framework was well adapted to the proof presented and was, apparently, perfectly acceptable to defendant's trial counsel (who has been replaced for this appeal). The instructions did not, as Anheuser-Busch argues for the first time on appeal, shift the burden of proof to the defendant. The district court was careful to say that the defendant need only articulate or explain legitimate, nondiscriminatory reasons sufficient to raise a genuine factual issue as to whether it did discriminate against Mr. Rowlett. Furthermore, the jury's question to the court during deliberations demonstrates that the jury understood that plaintiff retained the burden of proof throughout. The jury asked: 31 Point of law. Your charge to the jury was, first, the plaintiff must establish that he was treated differently; second, the defendant gives reasons for those differences; third, the plaintiff must then show evidence that those reasons were pretexts. Question: If these three points have been established on a complaint has purposeful racial discrimination then been established in that complaint? 32 Anheuser-Busch argues, also for the first time on appeal, 4 that the district court should have instructed the jury that they could not find for Rowlett unless racial discrimination was a but for cause of the harm he suffered. See Loeb v. Textron, 600 F.2d at 1019. The company's position below, which the district court properly rejected, was that racial discrimination must be the only reason for the harm. The district court instructed the jury that racial discrimination must be the actual motive or one of the actual reasons or a decisive reason for the complained of action and that Rowlett must prove he was denied training, etc., because of racial discrimination. These formulations do not track the but for language of Loeb v. Textron but they go just as far in instructing the jury that discrimination must be a determining factor. Id., 600 F.2d at 1019.