In the latter part of 1974 Gale Weeks, formerly the Chief of Police of Little Rock, Arkansas, and several other police officers were charged in a federal district court with violating the civil rights of city prisoners. Shortly after the trial began Weeks, through an informant, learned that one or more city police officers had allegedly discussed the case with Richard Mays, the attorney representing the plaintiffs in the civil rights action. Lieutenant W. E. “Sonny” Simpson was identified as one of those officers.
Shortly after he was identified as having conferred with Mays, Chief Weeks transferred Simpson to the city jail. In addition, Simpson received quarterly evaluation ratings which were dramatically lower than the level of his past performance scores. As a result of the transfer and the poor ratings Simpson brought an action under
42 U.S.C. s 1983 charging Weeks, John C. Terry, the Assistant Chief of Police, and Forrest H. Parkman, a police lieutenant, with conspiring to deprive him of his civil rights by restraining his First Amendment right to free speech. The defendants answered that departmental regulations prohibiting the discussion of matters which were the subject of ongoing investigation justified any action taken as a result of their belief that Simpson had spoken with Mays.