The opinion
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT
No. 95-50605
Summary Calendar
MELISSA AIROLDI,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
VERSUS
LEE HISLE, ET AL.,
Defendants,
LEE HISLE, in his individual capacity only,
Defendant-Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court
For the Western District of Texas
(A-94-CV-655)
May 21, 1996
Before WIENER, PARKER and DENNIS, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:1
Lee Hisle has appealed the district court's order denying his
motion for summary judgment based on a qualified immunity claim.
1
Pursuant to Local Rule 47.5, the court has determined that
this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except
under the limited circumstances set forth in Local Rule 47.5.4.
1
Because this court lacks jurisdiction, the appeal is dismissed.
FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY
Melissa Airoldi, a librarian for Austin Community College
(ACC) filed a complaint in federal district court against ACC and
three of its employees. Airoldi asserted that she was retaliated
against for reporting misuse of public tax dollars to her
supervisor and the head of the ACC library system, Lee Hisle. The
defendants moved to dismiss the suit under FED. R. CIV. P. 12(b)(6).
The district court denied the motion. Airoldi subsequently amended
her complaint. Airoldi claimed retaliation for protected speech,
violation of the right to free speech, violation of due process,
and defamation.
The defendants filed a motion for summary judgment. The court
granted summary judgment with respect to Airoldi's claims of
defamation and violation of the Texas Whistleblower Act. The
district court denied the motion with respect to Airoldi's federal
and state constitutional claims. The district found that Hisle was
not entitled to qualified immunity due to the existence of material
issues of fact. The district court concluded "that if the
plaintiff's allegations relating to Hisle's behavior proved true,
such retaliatory behavior is not of a nature that any reasonable
official could possibly have thought legitimate."
JURISDICTION TO ADDRESS INTERLOCUTORY APPEAL
Summary judgment determinations are appealable when they
resolve a dispute concerning an abstract issue of law relating to
qualified immunity, typically whether the federal right allegedly
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infringed was clearly established. Behrens v. Pelletier, 1996 WL
71218, at *9 (U.S. Feb. 21, 1996). However, determinations of
evidentiary sufficiency are not immediately appealable merely
because they happen to arise in a qualified immunity case. Id.
The sole complaint raised by Hisle in this appeal is that the
district court erred in denying his motion for summary judgment
because Airoldi failed to adduce adequate proof to support her
claim in response to the motion. Because this Court lacks
jurisdiction over the issue raised by Appellant, the appeal must be
dismissed.
The motions of both parties for leave to supplement the briefs
are GRANTED.
APPEAL DISMISSED.
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