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Civil rights Keyed to Jeffries, 5th Ed.
Hafer v. Melo
Citation:
502 U.S. 21 (1991)Facts
In 1988, Barbara Hafer campaigned for the position of Auditor General of Pennsylvania. During her campaign, she allegedly received a list of 21 employees in the auditor general’s office who had secured their jobs through payments to a former employee. Hafer publicly promised to fire all employees on this list if elected. After winning the election, Hafer dismissed 18 employees, including James Melo, Jr., claiming they had “bought” their jobs. Melo and seven other terminated employees sued Hafer seeking monetary damages under § 1983. Another group of respondents, including Carl Gurley, also lost their jobs shortly after Hafer took office. These respondents alleged that Hafer discharged them because of their Democratic political affiliation and support for her opponent in the 1988 election. They too filed suit against Hafer seeking monetary damages and reinstatement under § 1983.
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