Justia U.S. 1st Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

The plaintiff, employed by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, was observed taking a security pass from a car. He shredded the pass, without reporting to his superiors. The Puerto Rico Police Department arrested, charged, and investigated, but because the employee was already under investigation for misconduct, an agent of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was dispatched and observed some of the ensuing questioning and hearing, without participating. The case against the employee was dismissed. The employee's claim of malicious prosecution through the DHS agent was rejected on summary judgment. The First Circuit affirmed, looking to state law, as required by the Federal Torts Claims Act. The DHS agent was not actively instrumental in the investigation and there was no evidence of malice.

The district court rejected a challenge to 5 U.S.C. 3328, which bars males who have knowingly and willfully failed to register for the draft by age 26 from employment by the executive branch. The First Circuit vacated and remanded for entry of a judgment denying relief for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. The exclusive remedy for the plaintiffs, who were dismissed or resigned from federal employment after discovery of their failure to register, is under the Civil Service Reform Act. Although the claims implicate constitutional violations, Congress intended to consolidate employee removal actions in a single forum. The Merit System Protection Board cannot grant relief by invalidating the statute, but a court could do so on review of board action. The court characterized the constitutional challenges as "unpromising."