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Shelton v. City of Manhattan Beach9/28/2004
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS
California Rules of Court, rule 977(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 977(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 977.
I. INTRODUCTION
This case involves alleged harassment, discrimination, and retaliation against a gay police sergeant. Shawn Shelton, plaintiff, appeals from a judgment in favor of the City of Manhattan Beach (the city), Chief of Police Ernest M. Klevesahl, Jr., Officer Eric Eccles, and Officer Donovan Sellan, defendants. The trial court granted each of defendants' 13 summary adjudication requests and entered a summary judgment pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure section 437c. Because triable issues of material fact exist with respect to each of plaintiff's four causes of action, we reverse the summary judgment and the adjudication orders.
The evidence in this case is in sharp conflict. Plaintiff presented evidence that widespread sexual orientation discrimination existed within the city's police department (the department). Defendants presented evidence that such was not the case. Likewise, defendants presented evidence that plaintiff engaged in misconduct. That evidence has been contradicted. All we are concluding is that the pretrial summary judgment and adjudication orders should not have been entered.
II. BACKGROUND
The trial court sustained numerous objections defendants raised to evidence plaintiff submitted in opposition to the summary judgment or adjudication motion. As discussed below, we find plaintiff has not met his burden on appeal to establish an abuse of discretion as to those rulings. Therefore, we refer only to evidence as to which no objection was sustained.
A. Plaintiff's August 22, 2001, Internal Complaint of Sexual Orientation Harassment and Discrimination
Plaintiff was employed by the department beginning in April 1994, following five years of unblemished service with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Due to his consistently excellent performance, former Police Chief Ted Mertens promoted plaintiff to detective after two years and sergeant after four years. Plaintiff's promotion to sergeant after four years was the most rapid such promotion in the department's history. In 1999, Chief Klevesahl promoted plaintiff to a premium pay position as head of the department's Human Resources Division. Plaintiff at all times received positive performance reviews. Plaintiff's fellow officers elected him president of their union. Prior to August 2001, when plaintiff first complained about sexual orientation harassment and discrimination, he had never been investigated for wrongdoing, had a complaint filed against him, or been disciplined. For the first
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