Sutton v. Providence St. Joseph Med. Ctr.

Sutton v. Providence St. Joseph Med. Ctr.

Opinion

 [*829]  OPINION

GRABER, Circuit Judge:

Defendant, the Providence St. Joseph Medical Center, refused to hire plaintiff Kenneth E. Sutton, Jr., after he failed to provide a social security number as required by federal law. Plaintiff brought this action alleging that Defendant thereby violated Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, as amended (Title VII), 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq.; the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb et seq.; the free speech guarantee of the First Amendment; the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552a; and the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. § 3512. Plaintiff also [**2]  brought various state claims. The district court dismissed the federal claims pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) and, thereafter, refused to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the state claims. For the reasons that follow, we affirm.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

] "Because this is an appeal from the dismissal of an action pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6), we accept as true the facts alleged in the complaint." Zimmerman v. Oregon Dep't of Justice, 170 F.3d 1169, 1171 (9th Cir. 1999), petition for cert. filed, No. 99-243 (Aug. 10, 1999).

On June 25, 1997, Defendant offered Plaintiff a position as a Senior Network Analyst. Plaintiff accepted. Before he could begin working for Defendant, however, Plaintiff was required to fill out employment forms that required, among other information, his social security number. Plaintiff believes that a social security number is the "Mark of the Beast" prophesied in the Book of Revelations, Chapters 13 and 14. Plaintiff therefore told Defendant that his religion prevented him from providing such a number. Because Plaintiff would not provide his social security  [*830]  number, Defendant refused to hire Plaintiff.

 [**3]  On February 24, 1998, Plaintiff brought this action, alleging that Defendant had violated Title VII, RFRA, the First Amendment, the Privacy Act, and various state constitutional provisions and laws. On June 1, 1998, Plaintiff amended his complaint to allege, in addition, that Defendant had violated the Paperwork Reduction Act. Thereafter, Defendant moved to dismiss the action pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). The district court granted the motion, dismissing Plaintiff's federal claims with prejudice. The district court then declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over Plaintiff's state claims and, accordingly, the court dismissed those claims without prejudice. This timely appeal ensued.

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