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Wilkinson v. State Crime Laboratory Commission1/31/2002
This is a government-employment dispute involving a whole passel of claims and counterclaims between a classified "full status" state employee and the state governmental entities and individuals that either employed him or supervised his work at the state's crime laboratory. Both sides have appealed from the Superior Court judgments that disposed of the parties' respective claims.
To resolve the legal issues presented, we must construe provisions of the Merit System Act (merit system) -- specifically G.L. 1956 § 36-4-59 (tenure in state service) and § 36-4-38 (dismissal) -- as well as the State Crime Laboratory Commission Act (crime lab act), G.L. 1956 § 12-1.2-6. In addition, we must decide whether certain 1994 amendments to the crime lab act (the 1994 amendments) stripped the plaintiff, Richard C. Wilkinson (plaintiff or Wilkinson), of a property interest in his "full status" as a classified employee under the merit system. Finally, we also must consider whether the individual defendants -- Louis Luzzi (Luzzi), who was dean of the Pharmacy Department of the defendant University of Rhode Island (URI) and also served as executive secretary to the Commission, and Dennis Hilliard (Hilliard), who was the director of the crime laboratory, defamed Wilkinson and whether Hilliard committed contempt of court. With respect to defendants' counterclaims, we address whether, as part of his employment at the crime laboratory, Wilkinson was entitled to receive certain benefits and compensation from either or both defendants, URI, and the defendant State of Rhode Island (state). For the reasons classified below, we reverse in part the rulings on summary judgment, affirm the final judgment embodying the trial justice's rulings, and remand this case to the Superior Court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. The pertinent facts and travel of this case are as follows.
Facts and Travel
In 1971, Wilkinson began working as a criminalist for the state in what was then known as the Laboratories for Scientific Criminal Investigation (laboratory), located at URI's Kingston campus. In June 1973, he became the laboratory's assistant director. In 1978, however, the General Assembly enacted G.L. 1956 chapter 1.2 of title 12, via P.L. 1978, ch. 206, § 2, which established the State Crime Laboratory Commission (commission), a named defendant herein. It also enacted G.L. 1956 chapter 1.1 of title 12, via P.L. 1978, ch. 205, art. VIII, § 1, which established the State Central Crime Laboratory (lab or crime lab) at URI. Section 12-1.1-8 authorized the commission, among other things, to pay the salaries of lab employees and to monitor the crime lab's general operation. Although the General Assembly did not authorize URI in 1978 to supervise the commission's employees or to manage the lab's activities, nevertheless, URI did so by exercising a close oversight of the lab and its personnel.
In July 1988, after obtaining twenty years of state-service credit, plaintiff achieved "full status" under the state's merit system as a classified commission employee for which he received his twenty-year certificate. In 1990, as part of a salary negotiation, the state offered plaintiff the nonclassified position of associate professor of toxicology at URI, in addition to his pre-existing position as assistant director of the crime lab. The state also allowed plaintiff to work fewer hours, for the same salary. Wilkinson accepted the offer, and in March 1991, the state appointed him acting director of the crime lab.
The present dispute arose with respect to a disagreement over what entity or entities actually employed Wilkinson and to whom he was required to report. By letter d
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