Le'China Spivey v. Department of Justice

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

MERIT SYSTEMS PROTECTION BOARD

2022 MSPB 24

Docket No. AT-1221-17-0340-W-1

Le’China N. Spivey,

Appellant,

v.

Department of Justice,

Agency.

July 29, 2022

Le’China N. Spivey, Ocala, Florida, pro se.

Kara Berlin, Atlanta, Georgia, for the agency.

BEFORE

Cathy A. Harris, Vice Chairman

Raymond A. Limon, Member

Tristan L. Leavitt, Member

OPINION AND ORDER

¶1 The appellant has filed a petition for review of the initial decision, which

dismissed her individual right of action (IRA) appeal for lack of jurisdiction

because she failed to nonfrivolously allege that she suffered a personnel action.

For the reasons discussed below, we DENY the appellant’s petition for review

and AFFIRM the initial decision.

BACKGROUND

¶2 The appellant filed an IRA appeal alleging that the agency accused her of

wrongdoing and subjected her to an investigation in reprisal for making a

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protected disclosure and engaging in other protected activity. Initial Appeal File

(IAF), Tab 1 at 4. In particular, she alleged that, on December 4, 2015, she

reported that a dog handler had violated standard operating procedures by not

having his dog on a leash. Id.; IAF, Tab 2 at 25-27. Following her alleged

protected disclosure, the agency conducted an investigation concerning

allegations that she provided false information other than during an official

investigation and/or lacked candor in connection with her December 4, 2015

report. IAF, Tab 2 at 28, 51, 90. By letter dated May 9, 2016, the agency

informed the appellant that it had concluded that she lacked candor but that it

would not take any action against her. Id. at 35. On May 18, 2016, the agency

again informed her in writing that no action would be taken against her and that

no disciplinary file existed. IAF, Tab 1 at 11, 63.

¶3 On or about June 11, 2016, the appellant filed a complaint with the Office

of Special Counsel (OSC), alleging that the agency’s actions constituted reprisal

for her protected disclosure and protected activity. Id. at 8, 15. On October 25,

2016, in response to the appellant’s request for information, the agency provided

her written notice that no disciplinary file existed regarding the allegations

against her and, as she was previously notified, the disciplinary process was never

initiated. Id. at 15-16, 66. On November 3, 2016, while the appellant’s

complaint was pending with OSC but before she filed her IRA appeal, the agency

issued a letter notifying her that it had concluded its investigation, found that the

allegation of providing a false statement other than during an official

investigation was not substantiated, and closed the case. IAF, Tab 2 at 43. On

January 18, 2017, OSC closed its investigation and notified the appellant of her

right to file an appeal with the Board. IAF, Tab 1 at 8. On March 10, 2017, the

appellant timely filed this IRA appeal. IAF, Tab 1.

¶4 Without holding the appellant’s requested hearing, the administrative j udge

issued an initial decision dismissing the appeal for lack of jurisdiction. IAF,

Tab 8, Initial Decision (ID). The administrative judge found that the appellant

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failed to nonfrivolously allege that she was subjected to a personnel action. ID

at 5. The administrative judge noted, among other things, that the agency

ultimately closed its investigation without taking any disciplinary action. ID at 3,

5. The administrative judge further found that the investigation did not meet the

definition of a personnel action because it did not result in any other personnel

action taken against the appellant. ID at 5. In particular, she found that the

appellant failed to nonfrivolously allege that she was subjected to a significant

change in working conditions as a result of the investigation and that its effect on

her working conditions was minimal. Id. The appellant has filed a petition for

review, to which the agency has not responded. Petition for Review (PFR) File,

Tab 1.

ANALYSIS

The administrative judge properly found that the appellant failed to

nonfrivolously allege that she suffered a personnel action as a result of the

agency’s allegations that she engaged in wrongdoing.

¶5 To establish the Board’s jurisdiction over an IRA appeal, an appellant must

have exhausted her administrative remedies before OSC and make nonfrivolous

allegations of the following: (1) she made a protected disclosure described under

5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(8) or engaged in protected activity as specified in 5 U.S.C.

§ 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D); and (2) the disclosure or protected activity

was a contributing factor in the agency’s decision to take or fail to take, or

threaten to take or fail to take, a personnel action as defined by 5 U.S.C.

§ 2302(a)(2)(A). 5 U.S.C. §§ 1214(a)(3), 1221(e)(1) 1; Salerno v. Department of

1

During the pendency of this appeal, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA)

for Fiscal Year 2018, Pub. L. No. 115-91, 131 Stat. 1283, was signed into law on

December 12, 2017. Section 1097 of the NDAA amended various provision s of title 5

of the United States Code. The Board lacks jurisdiction over this appeal under both

pre- and post-NDAA law. Among other things, the NDAA amended 5 U.S.C. § 1214(i)

to allow OSC to petition the Board for corrective action concerning damages incurred

by an employee due to an agency’s investigation of the employee if it was commen ced,

4

the Interior, 123 M.S.P.R. 230, ¶ 5 (2016); see Yunus v. Department of Veterans

Affairs, 242 F.3d 1367, 1371 (Fed. Cir. 2001).

¶6 “Personnel actions” are defined as follows: (i) appointments;

(ii) promotions; (iii) actions under 5 U.S.C. chapter 75 or other disciplinary or

corrective actions; (iv) details, transfers, or reassignments; (v) reinstatements;

(vi) restorations; (vii) reemployments; (viii) performance evaluations under

5 U.S.C. chapter 43 or under title 38; (ix) decisions regarding pay, benefits, or

awards, or involving education or training if it reasonably may be expected to

lead to an appointment, promotion, performance evaluation, or other action

described in 5 U.S.C. § 2302(a)(2)(A); (x) decisions to order psychiatric testing

or examination; (xi) implementations or enforcements of any nondisclosure

policy, form, or agreement; and (xii) any other significant changes in duties,

responsibilities, or working conditions. 5 U.S.C. § 2302(a)(2)(A).

¶7 Often, a “personnel action” in the context of an IRA appeal takes the form

of a proposal or decision to impose discipline for a sustained charge of

misconduct. See, e.g., Bacas v. Department of the Army, 99 M.S.P.R. 464, ¶¶ 2, 5

(2005) (finding that an agency’s decision to propose the appellant’s removal

based on charges of insubordination, creating a disturbance in the workplace,

false statements, and inability to work was a covered personnel action under

5 U.S.C. § 2302(a)(2)(A)); Sutton v. Department of Justice, 94 M.S.P.R. 4, ¶¶ 2,

12 (2003) (finding that a proposed and effected removal based on charges of

misuse of Government property, unprofessional behavior, and making

misrepresentations during an official investigation constituted personnel actions),

aff’d, 97 F. App’x 322 (Fed. Cir. 2004). Absent any proposed disciplinary action,

however, the mere threat of disciplinary action also can amount to a personnel

expanded, or extended in retaliation for protected whistleblower activity. NDAA,

§ 1097(c)(4), 131 Stat. at 1619. Here, however, OSC has not petitioned the Board for

such relief.

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action. See 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(8)-(9); Hoback v. Department of the Treasury,

86 M.S.P.R. 425, ¶¶ 9-10 (2000) (clarifying that a threat of discipline must be of

a covered personnel action); 5 C.F.R. §§ 1209.2(a), 1209.6(a)(5)(i).

¶8 For example, in Gergick v. General Services Administration, 43 M.S.P.R.

651, 654 (1990), an agency investigation resulted in a record of inquiry in which

the agency notified the appellant that it appeared that he had violated the

agency’s standards of acceptable conduct or behavior, which could result in

disciplinary action. The Board found that the record of inquiry amounted to a

threat to take a personnel action. Gergick, 43 M.S.P.R. at 656-57. The Board

acknowledged that the record of inquiry did not include a statement that

disciplinary action was being proposed and did not include a specific reference to

a particular kind of discipline that may be imposed. Id. The Board found,

however, that the language in the record of inquiry nonetheless served as notice

that disciplinary action was possible. Id. at 657. The Board further highlighted

that the likelihood of discipline was not insignificant given that the record of

inquiry was issued only after the agency had conducted an investigation of the

appellant’s activities and had compiled a substantial file. Id.

¶9 Under the circumstances here, we agree with the administrative judge that

the appellant failed to nonfrivolously allege 2 that she suffered a personnel action

in connection with the agency’s allegations that she engaged in wrongdoing. The

record reflects that the agency did not take or propose to take any disciplinary

action as a result of such allegations. IAF, Tab 1 at 59, 63, 66, Tab 2 at 43.

Further, we find that the appellant has not made a nonfrivolous allegation that the

agency threatened to take any disciplinary action against her. I n contrast to

Gergick, the agency here provided written notice to the appellant that no action

would be taken as a result of the findings of the investigation. IAF, Tab 1 at 59,

2

A nonfrivolous allegation is an assertion that, if proven, could est ablish the matter at

issue. 5 C.F.R. § 1201.4(s).

6

63, 66. We find that an allegation of wrongdoing alone, without any ensuing

disciplinary or adverse action, or threat of disciplinary or adverse action, does not

constitute a personnel action.

The administrative judge properly found that the appellant failed to

nonfrivolously allege that she was subjected to a personnel action as a result of

the agency’s investigation.

¶10 An investigation into an allegation of misconduct is not a personnel action

per se. Sistek v. Department of Veterans Affairs, 955 F.3d 948, 955 (Fed. Cir.

2020) (concluding that “retaliatory investigations, in and of themselves, do not

qualify as personnel actions” under the whistleblower protection statutory

scheme); see 5 U.S.C. § 2302(a)(2)(A). As explained in the legislative history of

the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012 (WPEA) , Pub. L.

No. 112-199, 126 Stat. 1465:

[A]gency investigations of employees are not explicitly covered

under the statutory definition of a “personnel action.” Instead, such

investigations come within that definition only if they result in a

significant change in job duties, responsibilities, or working

conditions or have effects that otherwise fit within one of the items

listed under the statutory definition of “personnel action.”

S. Rep. No. 112-155, at 20 (2012), as reprinted in 2012 U.S.C.C.A.N. 589, 608.

Further, the Board will consider evidence of the conduct of an agency

investigation when it is so closely related to a personnel action that it could have

been pretext for gathering evidence to use to retaliate against an employee for

whistleblowing. See, e.g., Johnson v. Department of Justice, 104 M.S.P.R. 624,

¶ 7 (2007); Russell v. Department of Justice, 76 M.S.P.R. 317, 323-24 (1997);

Geyer v. Department of Justice, 70 M.S.P.R. 682, 688, aff’d, 116 F.3d 1497 (Fed.

Cir. 1997) (Table).

¶11 Regarding a significant change in job duties, responsibilities, or working

conditions, the Board has held that only agency actions that, individually or

collectively, have practical and significant effects on the overall nature and

quality of an employee’s working conditions, duties, or responsibilities will be

7

found to constitute a personnel action covered by section 2302(a)(2)(A)(xii).

Skarada v. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2022 MSPB 17, ¶ 16. In Skarada, the

Board found that the appellant’s allegations that his chain of command harassed

him and subjected him to a hostile work environment by, among other things,

excluding him from meetings and conversations, subjecting him to multiple

investigations, accusing him of “fabricating data” and of a Privacy Act violation,

refusing his request for a review of his position for possible upgrade, yelling at

him on three occasions, and failing to provide him the support and guidance

needed to successfully perform his duties, when considered cumulatively,

constituted nonfrivolous allegations of a significant change in his working

conditions. Id., ¶ 18. However, the Board specifically found that the appellant

failed to nonfrivolously allege that the investigations themselves were covered

personnel actions because he did not identify any specific personnel actions

associated with them. Id., ¶ 18 n.4.

¶12 Here, we agree with the administrative judge that the appellant’s allegation

that she was subjected to an agency investigation fails to amount to a

nonfrivolous allegation that she was subjected to a personnel action. As

discussed above, an investigation itself is not a personnel action under 5 U.S.C.

§ 2302(a)(2)(A). Indeed, we agree with the principle, explained by the agency

here in its communication to the appellant, that, to maintain the integrity of the

working environment, an employer should thoroughly investigate allegations of

possible employee wrongdoing. IAF, Tab 2 at 43. The investigation here did not

result in any proposal of disciplinary or corrective action, the appellant’s detail,

transfer, or reassignment, or any other personnel action identified in 5 U.S.C.

§ 2302(a)(2)(A). We find no allegations of fact that, if proven, could establish

that the investigation amounted to a threat to take a personnel action or was

pretext for gathering evidence to use to retaliate against the appellant for her

alleged protected disclosure. See, e.g., Miller v. Department of Justice, 842 F.3d

1252, 1254-56 (Fed. Cir. 2016) (analyzing the appellant’s claim that an agency

8

investigation stemming from his protected disclosures that resulted in his

reassignment constituted reprisal).

¶13 Further, we agree with the administrative judge that the appellant failed to

nonfrivolously allege facts that could prove that the investigation amounted to a

significant change in working conditions. 3 ID at 5. The appellant offered no

allegations or evidence concerning any practical or significant effects that the

investigation had on the overall nature and quality of her working conditions,

duties, or responsibilities. Rather, she alleged that she participated in an

interview and prepared an affidavit during the investigation. IAF, Tab 1 at 9. We

find these allegations, if proven, do not amount to nonfrivolous allegations that

she was subjected to a significant change in working conditions. See Sistek,

955 F.3d at 955-56 (finding that the appellant’s assertions describing a routine

investigation that resulted in a letter of reprimand did not rise to the level of a

significant change in working conditions such that it would qualify as a personnel

action under 5 U.S.C. § 2302(a)(2)(A)(xii)).

¶14 On review, the appellant contends that the administrative judge erred in

finding that the effect of the agency’s investigation on her was minimal and, thus,

did not amount to a significant change in working conditions. PFR File, Tab 1

at 4. For the first time, she argues that the investigation it self amounted to a

significant change in working conditions because, as a result of it, she was

hospitalized for 7 days, remained out of work for an additional 36 days,

exhausted her leave, had to take leave without pay, and had to apply for the

voluntary leave transfer program. Id. at 4-5. She further argues for the first time

on review that, during the investigation, she was hin dered from upward mobility

and lost out on employment opportunities, such as being transferred to another

3

The appellant also did not identify any agency actions beyond the investigation and

allegations of wrongdoing as contributing to her alleged significant change in working

conditions.

9

institution or being promoted. Id. at 7. With her petition, she submits various

documents, including a list of job vacancies to which she applied but was not

selected, a list of days on which she was unable to attend work between

December 1, 2015, and April 20, 2017, and various leave and medical documents.

Id. at 10-33.

¶15 The Board may consider new and material evidence or legal argument on

review if, despite the party’s due diligence, it was not available when the record

closed. 5 C.F.R. § 1201.115(d). The appellant has not shown that her newly

submitted documents, or the information contained in them, were previously

unavailable or that her arguments or evidence are material to the outcome of this

appeal. The documents contained in the appellant’s petition for review are dated

before the close of the record below and, thus, are not new. For example, the

appellant submits her voluntary leave transfer form dated January 24, 2017,

medical documentation dated February 1 and 7, 2017, and medical invoices dated

between January 13 and February 23, 2017. PFR File, Tab 1 at 22‑25, 30-33.

Her new arguments also are not material because they do not amount to

nonfrivolous allegations that she was subjected to a significant change in working

conditions and, thus, fail to show error in the administrative judge’s finding that

she failed to make a nonfrivolous allegation that she was subjected to a personnel

action. See Russo v. Veterans Administration, 3 M.S.P.R. 345, 349 (1980)

(stating that the Board will not grant a petition for review based on new evidence

absent a showing that it is of sufficient weight to warrant an outcome different

from that of the initial decision). Accordingly, we affirm the initial decision,

dismissing the appeal for lack of jurisdiction.

ORDER

¶16 This is the final decision of the Merit Systems Protection Board in this

appeal. Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations, section 1201.113 ( 5 C.F.R.

§ 1201.113).

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NOTICE OF APPEAL RIGHTS 4

You may obtain review of this final decision. 5 U.S.C. § 7703(a)(1). By

statute, the nature of your claims determines the time limit for seeking such

review and the appropriate forum with which to file. 5 U.S.C. § 7703(b).

Although we offer the following summary of available appeal rights, the Meri t

Systems Protection Board does not provide legal advice on which option is most

appropriate for your situation and the rights described below do not represent a

statement of how courts will rule regarding which cases fall within their

jurisdiction. If you wish to seek review of this final decision, you should

immediately review the law applicable to your claims and carefully follow all

filing time limits and requirements. Failure to file within the applicable time

limit may result in the dismissal of your case by your chosen forum.

Please read carefully each of the three main possible choices of review

below to decide which one applies to your particular case. If you have questions

about whether a particular forum is the appropriate one to review your case, you

should contact that forum for more information.

(1) Judicial review in general. As a general rule, an appellant seeking

judicial review of a final Board order must file a petition for review with the U.S.

Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which must be received by the court

within 60 calendar days of the date of issuance of this decision. 5 U.S.C.

§ 7703(b)(1)(A).

If you submit a petition for review to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the

Federal Circuit, you must submit your petition to the court at the

following address:

4

Since the issuance of the initial decision in this matter, the Board may have updated

the notice of review rights included in final decisions. As indicated in the notice, the

Board cannot advise which option is most appropriate in any matter.

11

U.S. Court of Appeals

for the Federal Circuit

717 Madison Place, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20439

Additional information about the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal

Circuit is available at the court’s website, www.cafc.uscourts.gov. Of particular

relevance is the court’s “Guide for Pro Se Petitioners and Appellants,” which is

contained within the court’s Rules of Practice, and Forms 5, 6, 10, and 11.

If you are interested in securing pro bono representation for an appeal to

the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, you may visit our website at

http://www.mspb.gov/probono for information regarding pro bono representation

for Merit Systems Protection Board appellants before the Federal Circuit. The

Board neither endorses the services provided by any attorney nor warrants that

any attorney will accept representation in a given case.

(2) Judicial or EEOC review of cases involving a claim of

discrimination. This option applies to you only if you have claimed that you

were affected by an action that is appealable to the Board and that such action

was based, in whole or in part, on unlawful discrimination. If so, you may obtain

judicial review of this decision—including a disposition of your discrimination

claims—by filing a civil action with an appropriate U.S. district court ( not the

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit), within 30 calendar days after you

receive this decision. 5 U.S.C. § 7703(b)(2); see Perry v. Merit Systems

Protection Board, 582 U.S. ____ , 137 S. Ct. 1975 (2017). If you have a

representative in this case, and your representative receives this decision before

you do, then you must file with the district court no later than 30 calendar days

after your representative receives this decision. If the action involves a claim of

discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or a disabling

condition, you may be entitled to representation by a court-appointed lawyer and

12

to waiver of any requirement of prepayment of fees, costs, or other security. See

42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(f) and 29 U.S.C. § 794a.

Contact information for U.S. district courts can be found at their respective

websites, which can be accessed through the link below:

http://www.uscourts.gov/Court_Locator/CourtWebsites.aspx.

Alternatively, you may request review by the Equal Employment

Opportunity Commission (EEOC) of your discrimination claims only, excluding

all other issues. 5 U.S.C. § 7702(b)(1). You must file any such request with the

EEOC’s Office of Federal Operations within 30 calendar days after you receive

this decision. 5 U.S.C. § 7702(b)(1). If you have a representative in this case,

and your representative receives this decision before you do, then you must file

with the EEOC no later than 30 calendar days after your representative receives

this decision.

If you submit a request for review to the EEOC by regular U.S. mail, the

address of the EEOC is:

Office of Federal Operations

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

P.O. Box 77960

Washington, D.C. 20013

If you submit a request for review to the EEOC via commercial delivery or

by a method requiring a signature, it must be addressed to:

Office of Federal Operations

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

131 M Street, N.E.

Suite 5SW12G

Washington, D.C. 20507

(3) Judicial review pursuant to the Whistleblower Protection

Enhancement Act of 2012. This option applies to you only if you have raised

claims of reprisal for whistleblowing disclosures under 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(8) or

other protected activities listed in 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D).

If so, and your judicial petition for review “raises no challenge to the Board’s

13

disposition of allegations of a prohibited personnel practice described in

section 2302(b) other than practices described in section 2302(b)(8), or

2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D),” then you may file a petition for judicial

review either with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit or any court

of appeals of competent jurisdiction. 5 The court of appeals must receive your

petition for review within 60 days of the date of issuance of this decision.

5 U.S.C. § 7703(b)(1)(B).

If you submit a petition for judicial review to the U.S. Court of Appeals for

the Federal Circuit, you must submit your petition to the court at the

following address:

U.S. Court of Appeals

for the Federal Circuit

717 Madison Place, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20439

Additional information about the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal

Circuit is available at the court’s website, www.cafc.uscourts.gov. Of particular

relevance is the court’s “Guide for Pro Se Petitioners and Appellants,” which is

contained within the court’s Rules of Practice, and Forms 5, 6, 10, and 11.

If you are interested in securing pro bono representation for an appeal to

the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, you may visit our website at

http://www.mspb.gov/probono for information regarding pro bono representation

for Merit Systems Protection Board appellants before the Federal Circuit. The

5

The original statutory provision that provided for judicial review of certain

whistleblower claims by any court of appeals of competent jurisdiction expired on

December 27, 2017. The All Circuit Review Act, signed into law by the President on

July 7, 2018, permanently allows appellants to file petitions for judicial review of

MSPB decisions in certain whistleblower reprisal cases with the U.S. Court of Appeals

for the Federal Circuit or any other circuit court of appeals of competent jurisdiction.

The All Circuit Review Act is retroactive to November 26, 2017. Pub. L. No. 115 -195,

132 Stat. 1510.

14

Board neither endorses the services provided by any attorney nor warrants that

any attorney will accept representation in a given case.

Contact information for the courts of appeals can be found at their

respective websites, which can be accessed through the link below:

http://www.uscourts.gov/Court_Locator/CourtWebsites.aspx.

FOR THE BOARD:

/s/

Jennifer Everling

Acting Clerk of the Board

Washington, D.C.