Supreme Court ruling in firefighters' case could have local impact

http://www.connpost.com/ci_12717593
http://www.connpost.com/ci_12716839
http://www.connpost.com/ci_12715844

By Michael P. Mayko
STAFF WRITER
Updated: 06/30/2009 07:01:46 AM EDT

Supreme Court ruling in firefighters' case could have local impact - Topix
Supreme Court ruling could have local impact - Topix
Supreme Court ruling could have local impact - Topix

Monday's U.S. Supreme Court ruling that New Haven unfairly denied promotions to white firefighters because it feared being sued by minorities who scored poorly on tests will set new standards for hiring and promotions, some legal experts said, and may have a dramatic impact on a similar case involving Bridgeport.

"Municipalities should be dancing in the streets," said Richard Albrecht, a lawyer representing 12 white Bridgeport firefighters who filed a similar reverse discrimination case earlier this year. "What the Supreme Court is saying is get back to firefighting and policing and stop trying to solve societal problems in the context of municipal employment."

"The ruling further erodes Title VII," said Michael Koskoff, a Bridgeport lawyer who, in the 1970s, brought several successful federal suits under that anti-discrimination law and forced cities such as Bridgeport and New Haven to hire minorities in what were almost exclusive white police and fire departments. "It appears that where we are heading is back to promoting those who score highest on exams without regard to diversity."

What could happen next is settlement discussion in the Bridgeport 12 case, which is pending in two parts -- reinstatement of the original scores and determination of damages -- before two different federal judges.

In that case, Bridgeport rescored a 2007 fire lieutenant's exam because no black people would have been promoted. They sharply reduced the percentage


given to the written test and doubled the weight of the oral portion. Then, while appeals were pending before the Civil Service Commission, the city made promotions based on the revised scores.

"Our case was much stronger than New Haven's to begin with," Albrecht said. "Then the city violated its own civil service rules and practices by promoting while the appeals were pending."

Of the 12 plaintiffs, two were promoted. Three others were demoted from provisional lieutenant appointments back to firefighter.

"I suspect Bridgeport will want to settle," Albrecht said.

City Attorney Mark Anastasi did not return calls for comment Monday.

Fallout from Monday's decision won't stop with the fire department, either.

Karen Torre, a lawyer who represented the white firefighters in the New Haven case, said she is preparing a reverse discrimination claim on behalf of white Bridgeport police officers in job assignments.

"Hopefully, the Supreme Court ruling will end reverse discrimination cases," Torre said, "and from now on, the most qualified people will be appointed."

But Shane Porter, president of the Bridgeport Firebirds, a group of black firefighters, said he fears this will have police and fire departments looking like they did "45 years ago."

"A lot of us fought long and hard to bring diversity to those departments," said Porter, a fire lieutenant. "This could deter blacks from serving as firefighters and police officers. I'm concerned the departments may no longer represent the composition of their community."

"It's clearly a blow to civil rights," said Craig Kelly, president of the Greater Bridgeport NAACP. He is one of the first black firefighters in Bridgeport hired under a federal court order in the 1980s. "We tried to rally the community in anticipation of this ruling, but too many were content to sit on the sidelines. Now we have to see what happens."

In a 5-4 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court found New Haven acted improperly by throwing out the results of fire department lieutenant and captain promotional exams because no blacks scored high enough to qualify for the jobs. New Haven city officials explained their decision by saying it feared a lawsuit from minorities.

Justice Anthony Kennedy, in writing the majority decision for the high court, said, "Fear of litigation alone cannot justify an employer's reliance on race to the detriment of individuals who passed the examination and qualified for the promotions."

That is a strong statement, Koskoff said.

"From now on, employers are going to be afraid to do anything voluntarily on their own," he said. "Minorities are going to have to sue, and their method of proof is going to have to be a lot stronger."

Michael P. Mayko writes for the Connecticut Post.