OPINION AND ORDER Tyrone Welch (“Plaintiff”) initiated this action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §1983 against the City of Peekskill (the “City”) and Andrew Y. Stewart (“Stewart” and together, “Defendants”) by the filing of a Complaint on August 27, 2021. (Doc. 1, “Compl.”). Plaintiff asserts separate claims for First Amendment retaliation and municipal liability under Monell v. Dep’t of Soc. Servs. of City of New York, 436 U.S. 658 (1978) (“Monell”). (See generally Compl.). On October 4, 2022, the parties filed a joint Rule 56.1 Statement. (Doc. 30, “56.1 Smt.”). On January 30, 2023, in accordance with the briefing schedule set by the Court, Defendants served their motion for summary judgment on Plaintiff. (Doc. 36; Doc. 37, “Def. Br.”; Doc. 38; Doc. 39; Doc. 40, “Field Decl.”). Plaintiff served his opposition to Defendants’ motion for summary judgment on February 21, 2023. (Doc. 41, “Pl. Br.”; Doc. 42, “Pl. Decl.”; Doc. 43). Defendants’ motion was fully submitted on March 6, 2023, upon the filing of their motion papers, Plaintiff’s opposition, and their reply brief (Doc. 44, “Reply”; Doc. 45). On March 10, 2023, Defendants filed a notice of supplemental authority in connection with their motion for summary judgment. (Doc. 46). For the reasons set forth below, Defendants’ motion is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part. BACKGROUND The Court recites the facts herein only to the extent necessary to adjudicate the extant motion for summary judgment. Plaintiff has been employed as a Laborer with the City of Peekskill for 14-15 years. (56.1 Stmt. 1). The City has a written policy regarding employees’ use of social media both on and off the job (the “Social Media Policy”). (Id. 26). On March 23, 2021, Welch was given a written reprimand (“Reprimand”) concerning his violations of the Social Media Policy. (Id.
63, 100). The Reprimand specifically identified four social media posts from Plaintiff’s Facebook or Instagram accounts in January 2021: (i) a picture of Andre Rainey (“Rainey”) — the Mayor of the City at the time — and a quotation from Martin Luther King, which Plaintiff intended to suggest that “Rainey was more in love with money than with justice”; (ii) a photograph of Rainey with a news story about Rainey not seeking re-election with the added text “after selling out now I can leave. Job done. It only took me two terms to sell a black community youth center”; (iii) a photograph of Rainey with the added text “I sold a black community youth center because I’m a sellout”; and (iv) a photograph of former governor Andrew Cuomo shaking hands with Rainey with the added text “Massa isa did it! Massa Cuomo, isa did it sir. Massa we still going forward with selling public housing?” (collectively, the “Social Media Posts”). (Id.
