One of two lawsuits an OUPD lieutenant has filed against OU has been dismissed.
An Ohio University Police lieutenant suing the university for allegedly failing to pay all of his wages while on paid administrative leave has agreed to dismiss his federal lawsuit.
Lt. Christopher Johnson filed a lawsuit with the U.S. District Court's Southern District of Ohio in June, claiming OU violated the Fair Labor Standards Act. About two months later, Johnson filed a similar lawsuit in the Ohio Court of Claims.
Johnson was placed on paid administrative leave from Aug. 2, 2012 to July 26, 2013 while OU investigated allegations of his inappropriate on-duty misconduct, reported by a woman.
During that time, Johnson was required to be available by telephone to OU for nine hours a day, but was only paid for eight hours daily.
In each of his two lawsuits, Johnson asked that OU compensate his pay and liquidated damages, as well as compensatory damages and any other relief deemed “just and fair” by the court.
Daniel Klos, Johnson’s attorney, filed a court document on Monday, saying OU and Johnson had agreed that the case “should be dismissed without prejudice” and requested the federal court to approve of this motion.
The university had earlier filed a motion requesting for the dismissal of this case. The document stated that the court “lacks jurisdiction over the action” as OU is an “arm of the state,” therefore, is entitled to state sovereign immunity.
“Johnson’s Fair Labor Standards Act claim against OU should be dismissed because, under the Eleventh Amendment, state governments and entities that qualify as ‘arms of the state’ are immune from suit in federal court unless the state waived its right to immunity or Congress unequivocally abrogated the states’ immunity by law pursuant to the Fourteenth Amendment,” OU contended.
Despite the dismissal, Klos told The Post Friday that he still wants to reserve the right to refile the lawsuit.
Klos said he won’t contest the definitions of OU’s “state sovereign immunity” at the moment, as he is waiting to see how the case against OU in the Ohio Court of Claims will proceed.
Klos added the case includes claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act, and is waiting to see if the court accepts jurisdiction over that section of the case.
“If they don’t, then I may end up going back to federal court to try to make an argument that federal court does have jurisdiction because of an ‘arm of the state” issue.’ ” Klos said.
@joshualim93
jl951613@ohio.edu
