Christian v. South Carolina Department of Labor Licensing & Regulation ( 2016 )


Menu:
  •                               UNPUBLISHED
    UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
    FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
    No. 14-2168
    DAVID CHRISTIAN, III,
    Plaintiff – Appellant,
    v.
    SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF LABOR LICENSING AND REGULATION;
    CATHERINE TEMPLETON; SAMUEL WILKINS; WILLIAM COOK, a/k/a
    Ron; CHARLES IDO; HOLBROOK ALVEY, in their official and
    individual capacities, a/k/a Ryan,
    Defendants – Appellees,
    and
    LYNN RIVERS,
    Defendant.
    Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of
    South Carolina, at Columbia.    Terry L. Wooten, Chief District
    Judge. (3:12-cv-01382-TLW)
    Argued:    January 28, 2016                 Decided:   June 1, 2016
    Before GREGORY and HARRIS, Circuit Judges, and DAVIS, Senior
    Circuit Judge.
    Affirmed by unpublished opinion.    Senior Judge Davis wrote the
    opinion, in which Judge Gregory and Judge Harris joined.
    ARGUED: Julius Wistar Babb, IV, J. LEWIS CROMER & ASSOCIATES,
    LLC, Columbia, South Carolina, for Appellant.  Jonathan Pharr
    Pearson, FISHER & PHILLIPS, LLP, Columbia, South Carolina; Molly
    H. Craig, HOOD LAW FIRM, Charleston, South Carolina, for
    Appellees. ON BRIEF: James Lewis Mann Cromer, J. LEWIS CROMER &
    ASSOCIATES, LLC, Columbia, South Carolina, for Appellant.
    Kenneth P. Woodington, Daniel C. Plyler, DAVIDSON & LINDEMANN,
    P.A., Columbia, South Carolina, for Appellee Alvey.    Eugene H.
    Matthews, RICHARDSON PLOWDEN & ROBINSON, P.A., Columbia, South
    Carolina, for Appellee Wilkins. Damon C. Wlodarczyk, RILEY POPE
    & LANEY, LLC, Columbia, South Carolina, for Appellee Cook.
    Brian Edward Johnson, HOOD LAW FIRM, Charleston, South Carolina,
    for Appellee Templeton.      Katherine Anne Phillips, MALONE,
    THOMPSON, SUMMERS & OTT, LLC, Columbia, South Carolina, for
    Appellee Ido.
    Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
    2
    DAVIS, Senior Circuit Judge:
    David Christian, III appeals the district court’s grant of
    summary   judgment       to    his    former       employer,     the    South     Carolina
    Department      of    Labor,       Licensing,      and    Regulation         (“LLR”),    and
    several      individually          named    defendants,          on    his      claims    of
    discrimination based on race in violation of Title VII of the
    Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2 (2012), and his
    claim of civil conspiracy under South Carolina law.                                For the
    reasons set forth below, we affirm.
    I.
    A.
    Christian,       who    is    African-American,          worked     for    LLR     from
    2003 until his resignation in 2012 following the events at issue
    in this appeal.         Christian worked in the agency’s Professional
    and      Occupational          Licensing           division,          which       provides
    administrative services for forty professional and occupational
    boards    and        commissions       responsible         for        regulating       their
    respective professions.
    When    Christian       began    his       tenure   at   LLR,      each    of    these
    boards issued its own licenses with administrative support from
    LLR   personnel       dedicated       to    each    board.        In    2008,     Adrienne
    Youmans, then-director of LLR, created the Office of Licensure
    and Compliance (“OLC”) within the Professional and Occupational
    Licensing     division        in    order    to     consolidate        licensing       staff
    3
    working throughout the agency into one subdivision.                                OLC was
    charged      with     performing       licensing         services,         including      the
    issuance      of    licenses,       for     most        of   the        professional      and
    occupational        boards      administered       by    LLR.       Youmans       appointed
    Christian to lead the newly formed subdivision and promoted him
    to the position of Assistant Deputy Director.
    Many    of    the    boards     and   a     number     of    LLR    personnel       were
    dissatisfied with these changes.                  Shortly after the creation of
    OLC, the Board of Pharmacy sought and received an opinion from
    the   South        Carolina      Attorney        General      concluding          that    LLR
    personnel did not have the authority to issue licenses for the
    practice of pharmacy.            And in late 2009, two OLC employees wrote
    an anonymous letter to members of the South Carolina General
    Assembly outlining a number of problems they perceived within
    OLC and sharply criticizing Christian.
    The    anonymous       letter    set       off    something        of   a   political
    kerfuffle and, specifically, prompted two hearings by the South
    Carolina     House     of       Representatives.             Representative         William
    Sandifer,      III,       who    chaired        the     House      of     Representatives
    subcommittee        with     oversight       of       LLR,   testified        during      his
    deposition for this case that a number of his colleagues had
    approached him about the concerns outlined in the letter.                                Other
    representatives had also reported a high number of constituent
    complaints about the agency to Sandifer.                          Youmans testified at
    4
    one of the House hearings.                  In her subsequent deposition for
    this       case,    she       stated   that,       during    the     hearing,      Sandifer
    expressed numerous concerns about Christian in particular, which
    she    found       to    be   unusual.      Youmans      also       testified      that   she
    believed the anonymous letter was “full of lies, rumors, and
    innuendos.”         J.A. 1202. 1       In June 2010, twenty-seven legislators
    requested that the Legislative Audit Council conduct a review of
    OLC.
    In November 2010, Nikki Haley was elected governor of South
    Carolina.          She nominated Catherine Templeton to replace Youmans
    as     Director         of    LLR.     At   the      press        conference      announcing
    Templeton’s             nomination,      Haley       referred        to      “unacceptable”
    licensure wait times and characterized Templeton as someone who
    could fix a struggling agency.                     J.A. 970–71.       Templeton herself
    alluded to complaints about licensing and suggested that she
    would improve efficiency by returning licensing functions to the
    boards.
    During           Templeton’s      confirmation             hearing,     legislators
    emphasized that Templeton needed to repair the agency.                             Prior to
    her confirmation, Templeton spoke to members of the Boards of
    Accountancy and Medical Examiners and received a letter from the
    1Citations to the J.A. refer                          to     the   Joint     Appendix
    submitted by the parties in this case.
    5
    Board    of    Pharmacy    and     several        others      detailing        a    number    of
    complaints with OLC.         Templeton introduced herself to the chairs
    of the legislative subcommittees with oversight of LLR, and she
    met with the state’s Budget and Control Board.                             She also met
    with Youmans and two LLR employees, Rion Alvey and Jim Knight.
    After her confirmation as director of LLR, Templeton made a
    number    of     staffing     changes.              In       addition     to        OLC,     the
    Professional and Occupational Licensing division had two other
    subdivisions—the      Office       of    Board      Services,       led    by       Assistant
    Deputy Director Randy Bryant, and the Office of Investigations
    and Enforcement, led by Assistant Deputy Director Rion Alvey.
    Templeton promoted Alvey to Deputy Director of LLR and asked
    Bryant   to    retire,     which    he   subsequently           did.       She      appointed
    Charles Ido to serve as interim Assistant Deputy Director of the
    Office of Board Services and Mark Dorman to serve as the interim
    Assistant Deputy Director of the Office of Investigations and
    Enforcement.
    Templeton also embarked on a significant reorganization of
    the   agency.       From    January      to       August      2011,      LLR       executed    a
    reduction-in-force (“RIF”) of six different areas of the agency,
    resulting in the termination of sixty-nine full-time, permanent
    employees.       As part of this restructuring, Templeton announced
    that licensing functions would be returned to the boards and OLC
    would    be   dismantled     through      a       RIF   of    all   of    its      employees,
    6
    including Christian.            The RIF of OLC affected forty-eight full-
    time, permanent employees.                Of the affected employees, thirty-
    two    were    African-American,          twelve     were   white,      and    four    were
    identified as members of “other” races or ethnicities.                           Most of
    these employees, including Christian, were offered positions as
    administrative         assistants        performing    licensing        or    compliance
    functions for the various boards.
    After    the    RIF   was      announced,      Christian      interviewed        for
    three    available      positions:        Assistant     Deputy    Director        of   the
    Office    of    Board    Services,        Assistant     Deputy    Director        of   the
    Office of Investigations and Enforcement, and a newly created
    Assistant Deputy Director position in charge of inspectors in
    LLR’s Drug Diversion program.                  Christian was interviewed for all
    three positions at the same time.                  Alvey, a white male, and Lynn
    Rogers,   an    African-American           female,    conducted      the      interviews.
    They ultimately hired Ido and Dorman, the interim directors of
    the Office of Board Services and the Office of Investigations
    and Enforcement, as the permanent heads of those subdivisions.
    For the newly created position in the Drug Diversion program,
    they    chose    Ron    Cook,    an      LLR    employee    who   had    already       been
    performing      the     duties     now    assigned     to   the   Assistant        Deputy
    Director of that program.                Ido, Dorman, and Cook each had the
    highest score for their respective positions according to LLR’s
    interview criteria; Christian had the second-highest.
    7
    Christian did not apply for any other positions within LLR,
    and    eventually      accepted     the   administrative          assistant      position
    offered to him following the RIF.                 As Assistant Deputy Director
    of OLC, Christian had been classified as a “Band 8” employee
    with    an    annual      salary    of    $78,775.          As     an    administrative
    assistant, his classification fell to “Band 4” and his annual
    salary was reduced to $31,843.                 He resigned from LLR in January
    2012.
    B.
    Christian       filed    a    multi-count           complaint      against     LLR
    alleging      violations       of    Title      VII,       and     against    Catherine
    Templeton, Samuel Wilkins, Lynn Rivers, Ron Cook, Charles Ido,
    and    Rion   Alvey     (collectively,         the     “individual       defendants”),
    asserting claims under 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983, 1985 (2012) and under
    South Carolina law for civil conspiracy.                         Following discovery,
    the defendants each filed a motion for summary judgment.                             The
    motions were referred to a Magistrate Judge, who issued a Report
    and    Recommendation       recommending        that   the       court   grant    summary
    judgment      to    the     defendants       on      all     claims.         Overruling
    Christian’s timely objections, the district court adopted the
    Report and Recommendation in its entirety.                          Christian timely
    appealed.
    II.
    8
    We   review    a    district        court’s   decision       to    grant    summary
    judgment de novo.            Jacobs v. N.C. Admin. Office of the Courts,
    
    780 F.3d 562
    , 565 n.1 (4th Cir. 2015).                   “A district court ‘shall
    grant summary judgment if the movant shows that there is no
    genuine   dispute       as    to   any   material    fact      and     the    movant   is
    entitled to judgment as a matter of law.’”                     
    Id. at 568
    (quoting
    Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a)).            In determining whether a genuine issue
    of material fact exists, we “view the facts and all justifiable
    inferences    arising         therefrom     in     the    light        most   favorable
    to . . . the nonmoving party.”                  
    Id. at 565
    n.1 (citation and
    quotation marks omitted).            However, “[c]onclusory or speculative
    allegations   do    not       suffice,     nor     does    a   mere      scintilla     of
    evidence in support of [the nonmoving party’s] case.”                           Thompson
    v. Potomac Elec. Power Co., 
    312 F.3d 645
    , 649 (4th Cir. 2002)
    (citation and quotation marks omitted).
    A.
    Christian argues that the district court erred in granting
    summary judgment to LLR on his Title VII claims.                          We disagree.
    Upon careful review of the record in this case, we conclude that
    summary judgment in favor of LLR on Christian’s termination and
    non-selection claims is appropriate. 2
    2 Christian makes passing reference to his hostile work
    environment, constructive discharge, and disparate impact claims
    in his opening brief. He fails to include any argument on these
    (Continued)
    9
    A plaintiff may avoid summary judgment on a discrimination
    claim     under         Title    VII      through      two     avenues     of     proof:      by
    “presenting        direct       or   circumstantial           evidence     that      raises    a
    genuine issue of material fact as to whether an impermissible
    factor such as race motivated the employer’s adverse employment
    decision,”         or    by     relying    on    the    McDonnell        Douglas 3    burden-
    shifting framework.               Diamond v. Colonial Life & Acc. Ins. Co.,
    
    416 F.3d 310
    ,     318     (4th   Cir.    2005)       (citing     Hill    v.   Lockheed
    Martin Logistics Mgmt., Inc., 
    354 F.3d 277
    , 285 (4th Cir. 2004),
    recognized as abrogated on other grounds, Foster v. Univ. of
    Md.-E.     Shore,        
    787 F.3d 243
      (4th        Cir.   2015)).        Under     the
    McDonnell Douglas framework, a plaintiff must first establish a
    prima facie case.                
    Hill, 354 F.3d at 285
    .                  The burden then
    shifts     to      the     employer        to   articulate          a   legitimate,        non-
    discriminatory reason for the adverse employment action taken
    against      the    plaintiff.            
    Id. Once the
       employer    meets      this
    burden, “the McDonnell Douglas framework-with its presumptions
    and   burdens-disappear[s],               and    the    sole       remaining    issue      [is]
    discrimination vel non.”                
    Id. (alterations in
    original) (quoting
    claims, however, and has thus waived our review of them. See
    Eriline Co. S.A. v. Johnson, 
    440 F.3d 648
    , 653 n.7 (4th Cir.
    2006) (citations omitted).
    3   McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green, 
    411 U.S. 792
    (1973).
    10
    Reeves v. Sanderson Plumbing Prods., Inc., 
    530 U.S. 133
    , 142-43
    (2000)).    The plaintiff must present evidence that “demonstrates
    that the employer’s proffered permissible reason for taking an
    adverse     employment      action     is    actually      a   pretext    for
    discrimination.”        
    Diamond, 416 F.3d at 318
    .       Christian proceeded
    under both of these methods in opposing summary judgment before
    the district court.
    Christian argues that the district court failed to view his
    evidence of discrimination in its totality, or as a “convincing
    ‘mosaic’ of circumstantial evidence such that a reasonable jury
    could    infer    discriminatory     intent.”   Br.     Pl.-Appellant    23–24
    (citing Cason v. S.C. State Ports Auth., No. 2:11-cv-2241-RMG,
    
    2014 WL 588065
    , at *4 (D.S.C. Feb. 14, 2014)).             He refers to the
    Seventh Circuit’s “convincing mosaic” approach, under which a
    plaintiff proceeding by direct and indirect evidence may prevail
    by presenting a “‘convincing mosaic’ of circumstantial evidence”
    that would permit an inference of discrimination.               See Coleman
    v.   Donahoe,     
    667 F.3d 835
    ,   860   (7th   Cir.   2012)   (citation
    omitted).        Christian urges us to view his proffered evidence
    through this lens.
    This Circuit’s precedent already requires us to consider
    evidence of discrimination in the context of the record as a
    whole.     See Cook v. CSX Transp. Corp., 
    988 F.2d 507
    , 512 (4th
    Cir. 1993).       At oral argument, counsel was unable to identify
    11
    any significant difference between our existing precedent and
    the “convincing mosaic” approach.                   Accordingly, we see no reason
    to adopt the formulation that Christian advances here and will
    instead    evaluate     the    totality        of    the    evidence    to   determine
    whether he has shown that the RIF and his non-selection for the
    available management positions were motivated by discriminatory
    intent.
    1.
    Christian has failed to present evidence raising a genuine
    issue    of    material    fact    about       whether      race    motivated      LLR’s
    decision to eliminate his position as Assistant Deputy Director
    of OLC through a RIF.          While he points to substantial amounts of
    testimony and documentary evidence that, in his view, support
    his claim, none of the evidence he identifies is admissible,
    probative evidence of discrimination.
    The record is replete with evidence that Templeton, some
    LLR    employees,      several    South    Carolina         legislators,     and    the
    state’s newly elected governor believed that LLR was failing to
    perform its licensing function properly.                     LLR has consistently
    maintained that it conducted a RIF of OLC to reorganize the
    agency’s       licensing      operations       to      address     these     problems.
    Christian argues that the creation of OLC improved LLR’s ability
    to    timely   issue    licenses   and     that       LLR   had    no   evidence    that
    12
    returning licensing functions to the boards was more effective
    than retaining OLC.
    Christian’s      attack       on   LLR’s    rationale     for   the    RIF    is
    misplaced.     The subjective opinions of Christian and other LLR
    employees about whether the agency’s reasons for the RIF were
    well founded or foolish, without more, are insufficient to raise
    an inference of discrimination.                 See Dugan v. Albemarle Cty.
    Sch. Bd., 
    293 F.3d 716
    , 722–23 (4th Cir. 2002) (citing Williams
    v. Cerberonics, Inc., 
    871 F.2d 452
    , 456 (4th Cir. 1989)).                       “[I]t
    is not our province to decide whether the reason was wise, fair,
    or even correct, ultimately, so long as it truly was the reason
    for the plaintiff’s [adverse employment action].”                     
    Id. at 272
    (alterations in original) (quoting DeJarnette v. Corning Inc.,
    
    133 F.3d 293
    , 299 (4th Cir. 1998)).               Based on the record before
    us, no reasonable jury could find LLR’s stated reason for the
    RIF to be a fabrication to conceal discrimination.
    Christian also questions the implementation of the RIF.                       He
    disagrees    with   LLR’s     decision     to   retain   the   Office      of   Board
    Services division, which he contends was led primarily by white
    managers.    He also argues that the manner in which LLR executed
    the RIF functionally restricted his rights as a state employee
    to obtain other positions within LLR.                 These complaints simply
    reflect Christian’s disagreement with the agency’s decision to
    eliminate    OLC    through    a    RIF   of    its   employees      and   are    not
    13
    probative     evidence         of     discrimination         for   the    reasons      just
    discussed.        Christian points to nothing to indicate that LLR’s
    implementation of the RIF actually violated its RIF policy, and
    even if he did, such evidence, standing alone, is not proof of
    discrimination.             
    Dugan, 293 F.3d at 722
    (noting that evidence
    that an employer erroneously or even purposely misapplied a RIF
    policy does not prove discrimination).
    Christian’s other attempts to support his claim that the
    RIF was racially motivated also fall flat.                           He directs us to
    statistics of the racial composition of OLC, which show that the
    majority     of       OLC    personnel       were    African-American.         Christian
    contends      that            these      figures         illustrate         the      RIF’s
    disproportionate             impact     on     African-American          employees     and
    therefore     support         his     claim    that    the    agency’s      decision    to
    eliminate his position as Assistant Deputy Director of OLC by
    conducting        a     RIF    of     the     subdivision      was       discriminatory.
    However, he provides no comparison of OLC’s racial composition
    to    that    of       the     other     subdivisions         of   the     Division     of
    Professional and Occupational Licensing, or to that of the other
    twenty-one employees subject to a RIF during the reorganization
    of LLR during Templeton’s tenure.                     Without context or analysis,
    the    figures          Christian           offers     are     not       probative      of
    discrimination.             See Henson v. Liggett Grp., Inc., 
    61 F.3d 270
    ,
    276–77 (4th Cir. 1995).
    14
    Christian also tries to show that, after the RIF, white OLC
    employees    were     treated      more     favorably          than        African-American
    employees through preselection of white employees for available
    positions.     He offers no statistical evidence to support this
    claim.       Instead,       he     relies        entirely        on        speculation      and
    inadmissible       hearsay       regarding         how       LLR      filled         available
    positions    following       the    RIF.          And     as       Christian         concedes,
    preselection, standing alone, is not evidence of discrimination.
    Br. Pl.-Appellant 31–32 (citing Blue v. U.S. Dep’t of Army, 
    914 F.2d 525
    , 541 (4th Cir. 1990)).                   Christian has not, therefore,
    demonstrated       that    white      employees          were,        in     fact,    treated
    preferentially after the RIF, and, even if LLR had preselected
    the     individuals       Christian     identified            for      their     respective
    positions,     their      preselection,          without       more,         would    not    be
    evidence of LLR’s discriminatory intent.
    Finally, Christian points to testimony about employees’ use
    of a racial slur and a previous racially charged incident that
    occurred at the agency, as well as testimony by other employees
    who believed that Christian was treated unfairly because of his
    race.     Careful inspection of the record reveals that no witness
    testified that he or she had personally heard another employee
    use   a   racial    epithet,     only     rumors        to    that     effect.         Rumors
    regarding the use of racial slurs by unnamed LLR employees are
    not     admissible     evidence,        and       the        subjective        beliefs       of
    15
    Christian’s co-workers regarding the RIF of OLC and Christian’s
    subsequent       non-selection           for     a    management         position       with       LLR
    carry no more weight than Christian’s own bald assertions that
    LLR’s    conduct       was     racially        motivated.         See       Tinsley      v.    First
    Union Nat’l Bank, 
    155 F.3d 435
    , 444 (4th Cir. 1998) (“It is the
    perception       of    the     decision         maker    which         is    relevant     to       the
    question        of     [discrimination],              not      the      opinions         of    [the
    plaintiff’s] co-workers or third parties.”), overruled on other
    grounds by Nat’l R.R. Passenger Corp. v. Morgan, 
    536 U.S. 101
    (2002).
    Christian particularly focuses on the alleged conduct of
    Ron     Cook,    a     co-worker         who     obtained       one         of    the   available
    Assistant       Deputy       Director      positions        for      which       Christian      also
    interviewed.           Christian asserts that Cook circulated a racist
    video involving President Obama, told racist jokes, referred to
    African     Americans           as       “you    people”          or        “people      of    your
    persuasion,”          and    used    a    racial       epithet         in    reference        to    an
    African-American LLR employee.                       While “[d]erogatory remarks may
    in some instances constitute direct evidence of discrimination,”
    the   remark         “cannot    be   stray       or     isolated        and       ‘[u]nless        the
    remarks     upon       which     plaintiff           relies       were       related      to       the
    employment       decision       in   question,          they    cannot           be   evidence      of
    [discrimination].’”              Brinkley v. Harbour Recreation Club, 
    180 F.3d 598
    , 608 (4th Cir. 1999) (alterations in original) (quoting
    16
    McCarthy v. Kemper Life Ins. Cos., 
    924 F.2d 683
    , 686 (7th Cir.
    1991)), overruled on other grounds by Desert Palace, Inc. v.
    Costa, 
    539 U.S. 90
    (2003); see also Merritt v. Old Dominion
    Freight Line, Inc., 
    601 F.3d 289
    , 300 (4th Cir. 2010) (“[I]n the
    absence    of     a    clear       nexus      with     the    employment     decision     in
    question,       the    materiality         of    stray       or   isolated      remarks   is
    substantially reduced.”).
    Christian counters that Cook was actually a driving force
    behind the RIF, and therefore his racist behavior is evidence of
    the discriminatory intent behind it.                          Christian asserts that
    Cook   claimed        to   have    influence          with   South     Carolina    Governor
    Nikki Haley because Cook’s wife cared for the Haley children and
    that Cook had a “hit list” of people that he wanted to see
    terminated      from       the    agency.            Cook,   however,    had     no   actual
    influence over LLR’s decision to eliminate OLC through a RIF of
    its employees.         Cook testified that he did not have a friendship
    with Governor Haley, had not discussed LLR with her, and had not
    had any contact with her or her family since election night.
    Templeton testified that she did not consult with Cook on any
    personnel    matter.             Christian      also     could    not    have    reasonably
    believed    that      Cook       had   such     an    ability     to   dictate    personnel
    decisions at LLR.                At the time of the RIF, Christian held a
    higher position of authority in LLR than Cook.                            Christian also
    testified that he did not believe that Cook had any influence
    17
    with the governor until the RIF took place and the individuals
    Cook purportedly identified on his “hit list” were terminated.
    Because Cook had no influence over LLR’s decision to execute the
    RIF, and Christian could not have reasonably believed that he
    did, his alleged comments have no nexus with LLR’s challenged
    actions and therefore are not relevant to Christian’s claim of
    discrimination.
    Accordingly, considering Christian’s proffered evidence and
    arguments in the context of the record as a whole, we conclude
    that he has failed to present direct or circumstantial evidence
    that the RIF of all OLC employees that resulted in Christian’s
    termination was racially motivated.           For the same reasons, we
    conclude   that   Christian,   relying   on    the   same   evidence,   has
    failed to demonstrate that LLR’s legitimate, non-discriminatory
    reason for the RIF—dissolution of OLC in response to perceived
    problems with licensing—was a pretext for discrimination under
    the McDonnell Douglas framework. 4
    2.
    Christian has also failed to present evidence creating a
    genuine issue of material fact about whether his non-selection
    4 In reaching this conclusion, we assume without deciding
    that Christian has established a prima facie case.
    18
    for the three available Assistant Deputy Director positions was
    due to race.
    “A    plaintiff   alleging      a     failure    to   promote   can    prove
    pretext by showing that he was better qualified, or by amassing
    circumstantial      evidence         that      otherwise      undermines         the
    credibility of the employer’s stated reasons.”                Heiko v. Colombo
    Sav. Bank, F.S.B., 
    434 F.3d 249
    , 259 (4th Cir. 2006) (citations
    omitted).     We “assess relative job qualifications based on the
    criteria that the employer has established as relevant to the
    position in question.”         
    Id. The plaintiff
    need not have been
    the better qualified candidate for the position, but must show
    “evidence which indicates that [the employer’s] stated reasons
    for promoting [the other candidate] over [the plaintiff] were a
    pretext for discrimination.”              Anderson v. Westinghouse Savannah
    River Co., 
    406 F.3d 248
    , 269 (4th Cir. 2005).
    LLR has consistently maintained that the candidates chosen
    for   the   positions   at   issue    were     simply    better   qualified      for
    their respective positions than Christian.                  Christian contends
    that a reasonable jury could find that his non-selection was the
    product of discrimination because he was interviewed only once
    for all three positions, the individuals who were ultimately
    selected for those positions were already serving in an interim
    capacity    or   otherwise   fulfilling        the    responsibilities      of   the
    position, he was scored on only one score sheet for all three
    19
    positions,        one    interviewer’s       score    sheet     indicates       that    the
    interviewer changed two of his ratings to give Christian higher
    marks, and he had “extensive relevant work experience” for all
    three positions.          Br. Pl.-Appellant 48–49.
    Even    making          all    reasonable       inferences         in     favor    of
    Christian,    he        has   not   produced      sufficient      evidence       to    avoid
    summary judgment on his non-selection claim.                         As we have already
    noted, preselection, standing alone, does not raise an inference
    of discrimination.             Neither does the fact that he had only one
    interview and score sheet for all three positions, or the fact
    that one of his interviewers raised his score two points from
    what he had initially marked.
    Most    importantly,           Christian       does   not       argue     that    the
    individuals        who    were      selected      were   not     qualified       for    the
    positions they were awarded.                A comparison of the qualifications
    of   the   successful          candidates    with     Christian’s        qualifications
    readily yields the conclusion that the candidates chosen for
    each of the Assistant Deputy Director positions were extremely
    well-qualified for those positions, whereas Christian had less
    relevant experience.             Ido, who was awarded the position managing
    the Office of Board Services, had twenty-one years of experience
    at LLR and had performed well as the interim Assistant Deputy
    Director     of    that       subdivision.        Dorman,      who    was     awarded   the
    position managing the Office of Investigations and Enforcement,
    20
    had over thirty years of experience at LLR and had acted as the
    manager of that subdivision for two years while the Assistant
    Deputy Director was on detail.          Cook, who was awarded the newly
    created Assistant Deputy Director position of the Drug Diversion
    program, had already been successfully managing that program for
    two years when the position was created.               In addition, Ido,
    Dorman, and Cook all had experience that was directly relevant
    to their respective positions prior to assuming those positions
    or   the   associated       responsibilities    on    an    interim    basis.
    Christian, in comparison, had five years of experience at the
    agency and no experience in any of the subdivisions that he
    sought to lead.        “[R]elative employee qualifications are widely
    recognized as valid, non-discriminatory bases for any adverse
    employment decision.”        Evans v. Techs. Applications & Serv. Co.,
    
    80 F.3d 954
    , 960 (4th Cir. 1996) (citations omitted).
    Accordingly,      we   conclude    that   Christian    has   failed   to
    present evidence that LLR acted with discriminatory intent when
    it awarded the management positions to Ido, Dorman, and Cook
    instead    of   him,   or   that   LLR’s    reasons   for   choosing   those
    individuals were a pretext for discrimination.              LLR is entitled
    to summary judgment on Christian’s non-selection claim.
    B.
    21
    Christian       also    contends       that    the    individual     defendants
    should   not    have        received     summary      judgment      on    his   civil
    conspiracy claim under South Carolina law.                  Again, we disagree.
    In order to prevail on a claim of civil conspiracy under
    South Carolina law, a plaintiff must prove “(1) the combination
    of two or more people, (2) for the purpose of injuring the
    plaintiff, (3) which causes special damages.”                     Pye v. Estate of
    Fox, 
    633 S.E.2d 505
    , 511 (S.C. 2006) (citations omitted).                          The
    “essential     consideration”          of    a     civil    conspiracy     claim   is
    “whether the primary purpose or object of the combination is to
    injure   the   plaintiff.”         
    Id. (citation omitted).
         Christian
    failed to identify any evidence creating a genuine dispute of
    fact on this element of his civil conspiracy claim.                        Christian
    relies on the same evidence he cites to support his Title VII
    claim.    The evidence is insufficient here to show that LLR’s
    stated reasons for the RIF of OLC and Christian’s non-selection
    for the Assistant Deputy Director positions were false for the
    same reasons discussed above.               By parity of reasoning, a failure
    of proof to show racial animus in employment decision-making is
    a failure of proof to show that an object of a conspiracy was to
    harm a plaintiff by inflicting a race-based job injury.
    Christian also points to Templeton’s actions prior to her
    confirmation    as    evidence    that       she    and    the   other   alleged   co-
    conspirators acted with a primary purpose of harming him.                          He
    22
    notes that Youmans testified that Templeton raised the anonymous
    letter criticizing Christian’s management of OLC when the two
    met just before Templeton’s confirmation, and he argues that
    Templeton’s meetings with the governor, Representative Sandifer,
    members from the Boards of Accountancy and Medical Examiners,
    and various LLR employees prior to her confirmation “show the
    motives and personal vendetta Templeton held against Plaintiff”
    and evidence her intent to “impair Plaintiff’s employment and
    target African-American management of OLC.”          Br. Pl.-Appellant
    54.   No reasonable jury could make such an inferential leap
    based on the record in this case.        While a jury is charged with
    choosing    between   conflicting    inferences   from    circumstantial
    evidence,   “[p]ermissible   inferences   must    still   be   within   the
    range of reasonable probability, . . . and it is the duty of the
    court to withdraw the case from the jury when the necessary
    inference is so tenuous that it rests merely upon speculation
    and conjecture.”      Sylvia Dev. Corp. v. Calvert Cty., Md., 
    48 F.3d 810
    , 818 (4th Cir. 1995).       That an incoming agency director
    would learn about complaints concerning the agency and meet with
    individuals dissatisfied with that agency’s performance prior to
    her confirmation is entirely unremarkable.          The inference that
    Christian asks us to draw from these unexceptional facts rests
    wholly upon his own speculation and conjecture about the purpose
    and result of these meetings.       At summary judgment, that is not
    23
    enough.   The individual defendants were thus entitled to summary
    judgment on Christian’s civil conspiracy claim.
    III.
    For the reasons set forth above, we affirm the district
    court’s   grant   of   summary   judgment   to   LLR   and   the   individual
    defendants.
    AFFIRMED
    24