From Casetext: Smarter Legal Research

Adams v. High Purity Systems, Inc.

United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
Jun 9, 2010
382 F. App'x 269 (4th Cir. 2010)

Summary

finding that a "single comment about paying [Plaintiff's] ‘white ass back,’ while offensive, was an isolated threat; nothing in the Complaint suggests that [Defendant] made similar comments afterwards or followed up on the threat with any physical action" and thus granting summary judgment on the plaintiff's hostile work environment claim because the conduct was not "sufficiently severe or pervasive harassment"

Summary of this case from Okojie v. Metro. Nashville Hosp. Auth.

Opinion

No. 09-1849.

Submitted: May 21, 2010.

Decided: June 9, 2010.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, at Alexandria. Gerald Bruce Lee, District Judge. (1:09-cv-00354-GBL-JFA).

Barry Adams, Appellant Pro Se. Anessa Abrams, Saul Ewing, LLP, Washington, D.C., for Appellees.

Before NIEMEYER and KING, Circuit Judges, and HAMILTON, Senior Circuit Judge.


Affirmed by unpublished PER CURIAM opinion.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.


Barry Adams appeals the district court's order granting Defendants' motion to dismiss his federal employment discrimination and state tort law claims pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). We have reviewed the record and find no reversible error. Accordingly, we affirm substantially on the reasoning of the district court. Adams v. High Purity Sys., Inc., No. 1:09-cv-00354-GBL-JFA (E.D.Va. June 5, 2009; 2009 WL 2391939, July 2, 2009). With regard to Adams' reverse race discrimination claim, we find that Adams failed to allege that he was treated less favorably than others outside his protected class; thus, this claim was insufficiently pled. See McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green, 411 U.S. 792, 802, 93 S.Ct. 1817, 36 L.Ed.2d 668 (1973); White v. BFI Waste Servs., LLC, 375 F.3d 288, 295 (4th Cir. 2004). We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before the court and argument would not aid the decisional process.

AFFIRMED.


Summaries of

Adams v. High Purity Systems, Inc.

United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
Jun 9, 2010
382 F. App'x 269 (4th Cir. 2010)

finding that a "single comment about paying [Plaintiff's] ‘white ass back,’ while offensive, was an isolated threat; nothing in the Complaint suggests that [Defendant] made similar comments afterwards or followed up on the threat with any physical action" and thus granting summary judgment on the plaintiff's hostile work environment claim because the conduct was not "sufficiently severe or pervasive harassment"

Summary of this case from Okojie v. Metro. Nashville Hosp. Auth.
Case details for

Adams v. High Purity Systems, Inc.

Case Details

Full title:Barry ADAMS, Plaintiff-Appellant v. HIGH PURITY SYSTEMS, Incorporated…

Court:United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit

Date published: Jun 9, 2010

Citations

382 F. App'x 269 (4th Cir. 2010)

Citing Cases

Weth v. O'Leary

Intentional infliction of emotional distress is a highly disfavored claim in the Fourth Circuit; in fact, to…

Teasdell v. Balt. Cnty. Bd. of Educ.

" See Tawwaab, 729 F. Supp. 2d at 776 (quoting Hopkins v. Baltimore Gas & Elec. Co., 77 F.3d 745, 753 (4th…