Opinion ID: 774990
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Leventhal's Suit Against the DOT

Text: 21 Four days after he settled the DOT disciplinary charges, Leventhal filed this action in United States District Court for the Northern District of New York (Norman A. Mordue, Judge). In his complaint, Leventhal alleged, under 42 U.S.C. § 1983: (1) Fourth Amendment violations arising out of the computer searches; and (2) Fourteenth Amendment due process violations resulting from his demotion and the denial of the salary increase. 2 22 As a preliminary matter, the district court determined that the hearing officer's finding of a Fourth Amendment violation did not have preclusive effect on these proceedings. Regarding the propriety of the searches, the court found that Leventhal could not reasonably expect complete privacy in the contents of his computer because it was reasonable to expect that other DOT employees might view the directory structure and other contents of his computer in his absence. Turning to the justification for the governmental intrusion, the district court concluded that the allegations in the anonymous letter were sufficient to give rise to the reasonable suspicion that [Leventhal] was engaging in his private tax preparation business during work hours and that he might be using his computer in connection with that business and that an examination of the directory of the computer would produce evidence of work-related misconduct. On this basis, the court found that the scope of the initial search was reasonable and that the evidence discovered thereby justified the searches that followed. The district court rejected Leventhal's due process challenges to the DOT's failure to award him the 3.5% salary increase and his demotion to a grade 25 position, reasoning that Leventhal had no legal entitlement to either benefit.