Facts Ricci v. DeStefano

1 facts

1.1 examinations
1.2 parties
1.3 claims

facts

in late 2005, new haven fire department had 7 openings captain , 8 openings lieutenant. fill open positions, needed administer civil service examinations. examinations consisted of 2 parts: written examination , oral examination.

the examinations governed in part city of new haven s contract firefighters union (which stated written exam result counted 60% of applicant s score , oral exam 40%, , total score above 70% on exam constitute passing score). final selection governed provision in city charter referred rule of 3 , mandated civil service position filled among 3 individuals highest scores on exam.

examinations

the new haven department of human resources issued rfp these examinations, result of i/o solutions ( ios ) designed examinations. examinations administered in november , december 2003; 118 firefighters took examinations (77 took lieutenant exam , 41 took captain exam).

when results came back, pass rate black candidates approximately half of corresponding rate white candidates:

the passage rate captain exam was: 19 (58%) of 33 whites; 3 (38%) of 8 blacks; , 3 (38%) of 8 hispanics. under city charter s rule of 3 , top 9 scorers eligible promotion 7 open captain positions; top 9 scorers consisted of whites , no blacks.
the passage rate lieutenant exam was: 28 (47%) of 59 whites; 6 (32%) of 19 blacks; , 3 (20%) of 15 hispanics. under city charter s rule of 3 , top 10 scorers eligible promotion 8 open lieutenant positions; top 10 scorers white.

parties

ricci , nineteen other white test takers, including 1 hispanic, of whom have qualified consideration promotions, sued city including mayor john destefano, jr. lead plaintiff frank ricci, had been firefighter @ new haven station 11 years. ricci gave second job make time study test. since has dyslexia, paid acquaintance $1,000 read textbooks onto audiotapes. ricci made flashcards, took practice tests, worked study group, , participated in mock interviews. placed 6th among 77 people took lieutenant s test; thus, under rule of 3 , ricci have been eligible promotion.

lt. ben vargas, lone hispanic petitioner, allegedly attacked unknown black assailants in humphrey s east restaurant in 2004 , had hospitalized afterward. has since said believes attack orchestrated black firefighters in retribution filing legal case; account vigorously disputed critics. vargas quit hispanic firefighters association, members include brother, after group declined support legal case.

in addition ricci , vargas, other firefighters equally involved , named plaintiffs: steven durand, greg boivin, mark vendetto, john vendetto, kevin roxbee, james kottage, matthew marcarelli, edward riordan, sean patten, brian jooss, michael christoforo, timothy scanlon, ryan divito, christopher parker, michael blatchley, william gambardella, thomas michaels, , gary carbone. press dubbed group new haven 20.

claims

among other things, suit alleged that, discarding test results, city , named officials discriminated against plaintiffs based on race, in violation of both title vii of civil rights act of 1964, 78 stat. 253, amended, 42 u. s. c. §2000e et seq., , equal protection clause of fourteenth amendment united states constitution. city , officials defended actions, arguing if had certified results, have faced liability under title vii adopting practice had disparate impact on minority firefighters.