Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District / Date unavailable
David Barrett vs. Cole County, Missouri
David Barrett, a former Deputy Sheriff, sued Cole County for employment discrimination and retaliation under the Missouri Human Rights Act (MHRA) and sought judicial review of his termination. The trial court dismissed all claims for failure to state a claim. The appellate court affirmed the dismissal of Barrett's claims for judicial review, finding he lacked a property or liberty interest as an at-will employee without public disclosure of stigmatizing information. However, the court reversed the dismissal of Barrett's MHRA claims, concluding that his amended petition sufficiently pleaded facts for race/color discrimination, perceived race/color discrimination, retaliation, and associational discrimination. The case was remanded for further proceedings on the MHRA claims.