Disability Law United

Disability Law United is suing New Orleans for concealing emergency plans that impact the lives of disabled people. Read more here: https://conta.cc/3SmtRDE

NEXT MONDAY 7/29 @ 3pm PST, Civil Liberties Defense Center & Disability Law United will bring you an exciting, collaborative webinar! Registration is required - please register here https://bit.ly/DLU2024 Meet our panelists, who will gather to discuss important elements of protesting as a disabled person. Anita Cameron is a disability justice activist who has been involved in social change activism and community organizing for 43 years. Aviance Brown, Staff Attorney with Disability Law United Lauren Regan, Director of Litigation and Advocacy with CLDC [Image description: In the background, gray and white columns stretch across this post. Animated people in colorful shades of orange and baby blue walk among the columns. One figure, in a long trenchcoat, walks with a white cane in one hand and the harness of a service dog in the other. A woman in a hijab uses ASL nearby, and a group of orange people with megaphones, one of them in a wheelchair, parade next to her. Large text over the background reads “live webinar – protesting while disabled: risks and rights; how to make movement spaces, more inclusive.” on the line below, informational text is included which conveys that the webinar Takes Pl., Monday, July 29 at 3 PM PST/6 PM, and you can register your attendance here: https://bit. ly/DLU2024. The next image of the flyer lists the webinar panelist, who will be properly bio-d below. An informational summary reads “ Disability Law United and Civil Liberties Defense Center will cover basic legal information specific to protesting in the US while disabled. This webinar will discuss the historic treatment of disabled activists, how that has/is changing in the current political climate and what current issues and concerns are at protests. We will also dive into what movement participants can do to make our spaces safer and more accessible for everyone. Lastly, we’ll briefly cover, arrest, incarceration, and working with lawyers and the legal system.”]

Twenty-three seconds was all it took for a Sacramento Sheriff’s deputy to decide that the best course of action to help the caller, Elisa Daher, was to kill her husband in front of her. Now, we’re suing to help Elisa get the details. Disability Law United (DLU) and The National Police Accountability Project (NPAP) have joined forces to seek justice for the late Jaime and his widow Elisa. We filed a complaint against the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office, citing a “lack of transparency” after it refused to disclose records related to the shooting on Tuesday, July 9, 2024. Read more here: https://buff.ly/4f99TX6

Our victory was highlighted in the Tennessean! "The plaintiffs have identified hundreds of high-stakes interactions in which interpreters were not provided, many of which involved situations — such as receiving medical care — in which effective communication is an inherently vital component," U.S. District Judge Aleta Trauger wrote. She wrote there "is no longer any basis for disputing that such violations generally existed and were manifestations of a continuous, ongoing policy or practice." Check it out here: https://lnkd.in/erFcvKru This outcome was possible due to the bravery of our clients, our partners Disability Rights Advocates, Disability Rights Tennessee and Fox & Robertson and our supporters. Thank you!

DLU celebrates this victory for #DisabilityRights! Last week, a federal judge found that the Tennessee Department of Correction violated federal law, including the Americans with Disabilities Act, by failing to provide necessary accommodations for #deaf prisoners. This case has been in progress since 2020, supported by Disability Law United, Fox & Robertson, Disability Rights Tennessee (DRT), and Disability Rights Advocates (DRA). "The court re-affirmed that when Tennessee takes away the liberty of deaf people, It cannot also take away their right to the effective and professional services and tools they need to communicate with medical providers, educators, chaplains, prison staff, and their friends, family, and others outside of prison. Had Tennessee DOC recognized that incarcerated persons do not lose their fundamental human rights, it would have prevented years of discrimination and denial of access to the health, educational, religious, social, and other rehabilitative programs offered to non-deaf incarcerated people. DLU remains committed to fighting for the right to equal access to programs and services for deaf and hard of hearing people in carceral systems," said Al Elia, DLU Staff Attorney. Read the full press release here: https://buff.ly/4eVPS62

DLU statement in response to Supreme Court Upholding Ban on Sleeping Outdoors in Grants Pass v. Oregon homelessness case. "DLU joins advocates across the country in decrying the majority decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in City of Grants Pass v. Oregon issued today. The decision will significantly harm disabled individuals, who make up a large percentage of the unhoused, by allowing cities to fine and criminally prosecute unhoused individuals whose only option is to sleep in public places. In doing so, the court also limited the application of long-standing case law recognizing that an individual’s status cannot be the basis for criminalization. As Justice Sotomayor noted in her dissent, “the majority focuses almost exclusively on the needs of local governments and leaves the most vulnerable in our society with an impossible choice: Either stay awake or be arrested.” We applaud Justices Sotomayor, Kagen, and Jackson for their dissent from the decision and steadfast support for protecting the rights of the most vulnerable members of our communities. We join them in their hope that "someday in the near future, this Court will play its role in safeguarding constitutional liberties for the most vulnerable among us,” and their observation that in its decision, the Supreme Court abdicated that role today."

We have a summer love note all ready to arrive in your inbox. Our quarterly e-newsletter is going out Tuesday - make sure you're signed up to receive it. Sign up here: https://buff.ly/4cqlr5U

The frequency and severity of both extreme heat and wildfires are increasing due to climate collapse. Disabled folks are disproportionately exposed and uniquely vulnerable to extreme heat, and wildfire smoke causes and exacerbates disabilities. Yet the NYT doesn’t mention disability, and many Hazard Mitigation and Emergency Operations Plans don’t, either. Governments must account for the disability community in their risk analysis, hazard mitigation, and emergency planning and response to comply with federal law AND save lives. Read the NY Times article here:

Great news! Yesterday, DLU, with partners Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF) and King & Spalding, reached a settlement to support students with disabilities in Del Norte County, CA. Part of the settlement includes a commitment by the school district to provide compensatory education for students who missed school over the past two academic years, hire an expert in special education and staffing solutions, and seek support from the State of California to implement the changes. Students will no longer be told to stay home due to a shortage of aides. "This agreement highlights the importance of accountability and proactive measures in our education system,” said Cynthia Rice of Disability Law United. “We are optimistic about the District’s willingness to work on these issues, but remain concerned that the State has responsibilities that it has not yet lived up to, and we will continue to press those issues in this litigation so that the District is provided the assistance it needs." Thank you to our partners, supporters, allies, and the students and their families for standing up for the right to a quality education for all kids. For more information, read our press release here: https://buff.ly/3KDRrHU

On May 16th, President Biden signed the FAA Reauthorization Act into law, which includes provisions to address the travel concerns of disabled people. DLU successfully advocated for the inclusion of a service animal pilot program for disabled travelers. Due to structural inequities, many people who use service animals, particularly blind people, cannot access or have difficulty accessing the forms that currently need to be completed by a passenger flying with a service animal. The new service animal pilot creates an accessible and inexpensive pre-check procedure to provide such passengers with a means of avoiding those forms entirely across all airlines. Working closely with Senator Tammy Duckworth’s office, DLU staff attorney Al Elia coordinated numerous stakeholders to conceive of and draft the initial language for that pilot. Al then worked with stakeholders and congressional staff to ensure that the pilot was added to the initial house bill and that it remained in the final bill that was passed and signed into law. DLU is proud to have had an important role in addressing a significant barrier to air travel for passengers with disabilities.