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News highlights for Aug/Sept 2006

Accessibility: CA Judge Rules Accessibility Laws Cover Websites; TN City Reaches Agreement With Advocates Over Sidewalk Accessibility And Safety; CA Groups Claim State, Counties Violate Voting Act; Advocates Sue Washington Redskins Over Captioning; Class Action Seeks CA Statewide Sidewalk Improvements, Not Money

Community living: ADAPT's Actions Net Community Support Meetings With Top Officials; City Settles Lawsuit Over Group Home Locations; More Independence Through Web-Cam Monitoring?; Community And Family Cited As Reasons For Fewer Post-Katrina Suicide Attempts; Community Advocates Battle Developers Over Mixed-Income Housing in Gulf Coast

Crimes Against People with Disabilities: Prosecutors Say Couple Hid Toddler's Death While Pleading For His Rescue; Siblings Give Disturbing Details Of Boy's Punishments And Death; Latimer Still Says Killing Daughter Was "The Right Thing"; Murderer Sentenced For Killing Sister; Mother Faces Arson And Murder Charges Over Son's Death; WI Clinic Forced To Close Following Girl's Restraint Death; Jury Convicts T-Ball Coach Of Offering Player $25 To Injure Teammate, 9

Criminal justice system: Study Finds Most U.S. Inmates Have Mental Illness, But Few Receive Treatment; Hamley's Shooter Takes Early Retirement From Police Department; Former Inmate Blames Fall On Prison Guard; Seattle Police Defend Taser Use On Deaf Man

Education: New York Board Says JRC Cannot Use Aversives On Students, For Now; Student Files Action Against University Of Houston Over Missed Accommodations; Police Arrest Boy, 9, For Assaulting School Principal; Family Chooses Home-Schooling After Service Dog Denial

Employment: EEOC Says Starbucks Discriminated Against Seattle Barista; Fired Federal Worker Claims Employer Failed Her; NY Advocacy Agency Faces Discrimination Suit

Institutions: UT Community Activists Protest Nursing Home Stay Requirement; Feds Renew Threat To Withhold Oakwood Funds; Illinois Begins Year-Long Study On Institutions; Advocates Join Cost-Saving Debate To Push For Closing UT Institution

Progress: UN Panel Finalizes International Disability Rights Treaty; Deaf Ball Player's Victory Will Benefit Countless Others; Settlement Allows Goats To Stay With Boy; Denver Celebrates "Last Comic" Winner's Homecoming

In other news: TSA Issues New Airline Security Rules For Passengers With Disabilities Or Medical Conditions; Legal Group Says Medicaid ID Rule Is Unconstitutional; Health Department Directs Woman To Prove Her Monkey Is Service Animal; FEMA Settles Inaccessible Trailers Dispute; MI Gov. Orders Review Of Kevorkian's Health; Radio Contest Left Few Advocates Laughing; Mugger's Attack On Wheelchair User Backfires

Accessibility:

Berkeley, CA --A federal judge ruled on September 6 that businesses could be sued if they fail to make their websites accessible to Internet surfers with disabilities. The decision means that blind UC Berkeley student Bruce Sexton, Jr., the National Federation of the Blind of California, and the nonprofit law firm Disability Rights Advocates can move forward in their class action discrimination suit against Target Corporation, in which they claim Target.com violates state and federal accessibility laws because it remains virtually inaccessible to blind and partially sighted Californians.

Clarksville, TN -- The City of Clarksville and disability rights advocates from the grassroots nonprofit Wheel Me On agreed in August on the language of a January 2004 class action settlement outlining how the city will make sidewalks safer and more accessible. The agreement, which includes addressing the steepness of an estimated 900 curb ramps throughout the town, will likely cost the city up to $20 million over the next ten years.

San Francisco, CA -- The Paralyzed Veterans of America, California Council of the Blind, and American Association of People with Disabilities sued California Secretary of State Bruce McPherson and five California counties on August 1, claiming they are violating the 2002 Help America Vote Act. The groups allege that Alameda, San Francisco, Marin, Sonoma and Yolo counties have all failed to provide voting machines that allow voters with mobility- and vision-related disabilities to independently cast a secret ballot.

Landover, MD -- The National Association of the Deaf is suing the Washington Redskins pro football franchise and FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland, to force them to offer captioning during home games. In the class action, the advocacy group claims the stadium is violating the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing to provide captioning on scoreboards and video monitors for penalty calls and play information, along with safety and emergency announcements made over the public address system.

Berkeley, CA -- The legal firm Disability Rights Advocates filed a suit on August 23 on behalf of Californians for Disability Rights, Inc. and two citizens with disabilities, claiming the state Department of Transportation has neglected to make sidewalks along state highways and Park and Ride facilities safe and accessible to wheelchair users and people with vision-related disabilities. The suit calls for the department to make sidewalks, crosswalks, pedestrian crossings, other walkways and Park and Ride facilities along the state highway system throughout the state accessible to persons with disabilities. It does not seek monetary damages.

Community living:

Washington, DC--During the second week of September, about 500 activists with the disability rights group ADAPT used peaceful demonstrations in the nation's capital to say "No More Excuses!" to housing and healthcare officials, and to push for affordable and accessible housing and changes to Medicaid that would help people with disabilities to live in their own homes rather than nursing homes or other institutions. The officials were quick to agree to meet ADAPT's demands, thereby keeping the group from resorting to more confrontational civil disobedience techniques -- such as sit-ins and traffic shut-downs -- and dealing with massive arrests that have characterized ADAPT actions in previous years.

Milwaukee, WI--The City of Milwaukee has agreed to settle a federal housing discrimination lawsuit and pay $194,000 to the operators of group homes that had filed the suit. Earlier this year, city officials agreed to drop a three-decades old rule that required operators of group homes to seek special approval before locating within 2,500 feet, or about one-half mile, from existing licensed community facilities. Owners of group homes and community advocates had protested the old zoning rule, arguing that the restriction violated residents' rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act and federal housing laws.

Indianapolis, IN--ResCare, Inc., one of the largest providers of residential services for people with disabilities, has launched a technology project it says would help people to become or stay more independent while cutting down on the cost of having paid staff members in their homes. 'Rest Assured' uses Internet-based technology such as Web-cameras, sensors, microphones, speakers, personal emergency response pendants, and temperature detectors to allow people in several group homes, for instance, to be monitored by a single operator from miles away, the company claims.

Boston, MA--A Harvard University study has found that community and family connections have helped Hurricane Katrina survivors to find reasons to keep living. The report estimated that 15 percent of the population of Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi affected by the hurricane now face serious mental illness, with about one-third of those experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder while most of the others experience depression. However, the number of people who reported that they wanted to commit suicide actually dropped after the storm, with nearly 90 percent saying the disaster had actually helped them develop a deeper sense of meaning and purpose in life.

Baton Rouge, LA--The state of Louisiana is passing along about $100 million in federal special tax credits to housing developers as an incentive to build affordable housing in hurricane ravaged areas. While developers want the money to first be used to rehabilitate flooded buildings and build new ones for workers, members of the Advocacy Center want the money to be used to create developments to cater to all income levels so people with disabilities that use housing subsidies can better integrate into the general community. Advocates also want credits to be limited to developers that include units for residents with developmental disabilities.

Crimes Against People with Disabilities:

Union Township, OH -- Foster parents Liz Carroll and David Carroll Jr. were arrested in late August and charged with several counts related to the death of Marcus Fiesel, 3, who reportedly had autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Police said the couple had misled the public, prompting a 10-day search involving hundreds of volunteers, after saying the boy had wandered away from Mrs. Carroll while she 'passed out' at a park. Detectives said the boy had actually died several days earlier, when the Carrolls left him restrained in a locked closet while they went out of town over a weekend. Mr. Carroll is accused of disposing of the boy's body by burning it in a remote area several miles away.

Port Orchard, WA--In August, siblings of 8-year-old Christopher Michael Forder began telling authorities about the horrific treatment the boy, who reportedly had "reactive detachment disorder", suffered at the hands of their parents -- including being beaten dozens of times a day; forced to stay outside overnight for days without food, water or blankets; and having his head dunked into a bucket of dirty water 'until he stopped struggling'. One adult sister told officials that Robert and Kimberly Ann Forder had a family meeting explaining why they were choosing to not to take Christopher for medical treatment the day before he died in November 2002 of pneumonia. Mrs. Forder has pleaded not guilty to charges of homicide by abuse-domestic violence and first-degree manslaughter in the boy's death. Authorities could not confirm whether Mr. Forder, who is in Liberia doing missionary work with seven adopted children, would face similar charges.

Regina, Saskatchewan -- Robert Latimer told the Canadian Press in September that he still believes killing his daughter, Tracy, was the right thing to do. The Saskatchewan farmer is serving a minimum 10-years of a life sentence for forcing the 12-year-old girl, who had intellectual and physical disabilities, into the cab of his pickup while he pumped exhaust inside to kill her. Disability rights advocates who saw Tracy's 1993 death as one of countless examples of extreme abuse of people with disabilities, successfully argued before Canada's Supreme Court in 2000 that Latimer should serve at least the minimum sentence. Latimer will be eligible for parole in December 2007.

Largo, FL--Barbara Ann Burns, 55, has been sentenced to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter in the shooting death of her sister Debbie who reportedly had mental disabilities. Burns confessed to killing her sister in August 2004, then moving away a short time later. Debbie's body was found in the house in May 2005.

Perry Township, OH--On September 13, the badly burned body of Michael Henry, 25, was pulled from his bedroom where investigators said a fire had been set with gasoline used as an accelerant. Michael's mother, Lisa, was charged with first-degree aggravated arson and first-degree aggravated murder for deliberately setting the fire. The intense heat prevented Michael's father and firefighters from getting to Michael, who had cerebral palsy, used a wheelchair, and did not walk or talk.

Rice Lake, WI--The state of Wisconsin ordered Northwest Counseling and Guidance Clinic to close for at least six months because it failed to adequately address problems that led to the restraint-related death of 7-year-old Angellika Arndt. The girl, who had diagnoses of reactive attachment disorder, mood disorder, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, died May 26, one day after being restrained facedown several minutes at the day treatment center as a consequence for gargling milk.

Uniontown, PA--A jury has convicted youth T-ball coach Reed Downs Jr., 29, of offering to pay $25 to a player to injure a nine-year-old teammate that has autism and intellectual disabilities so he couldn't play. A jury convicted Downs of corruption of minors and criminal solicitation to commit simple assault, but acquitted him on a charge of criminal solicitation to commit aggravated assault because the victim, Harry Bowers Jr., was only bruised and did not "suffer serious bodily injury".

Criminal justice system:

Washington, DC--The Justice Department released a report on September 6 showing that more than 1.25 million people behind bars experience one or more mental illness. That represents more than one-half of the total inmate population across the U.S. including 56 percent of state prisoners, 45 percent of federal prisoners and 64 percent of local jail inmates. The report noted that less than one-third of them received treatment of any kind for symptoms of major depression, mania, hallucinations or delusions in the previous year. Most of those simply received medication, it said.

Springdale, AR -- Trooper Larry Norman, 40, who has been charged with negligent homicide in the shooting death of Joseph "Erin" Hamley, was granted a medical retirement on August 1. His attorney said the retirement is related to psychological fallout from the March 7 shooting of Hamley, an innocent 21-year-old who had cerebral palsy, an intellectual disability and mental illness. In April, a grand jury determined that Norman ignored instructions from fellow officers, and that the unarmed Hamley was likely following Norman's orders when the trooper fired the shot that killed the young man.

Atlanta, GA--A former inmate at a Georgia prison is suing the state's corrections department, saying it was negligent and violated his rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Byron "B.J." Rhodan claimed that in April 2004, when he was serving 20 months for drug convictions, a prison guard told him to shave. When Rhodan, who stands 4 feet 1 inches tall, explained that he could not reach the mirror over the sink in his cell, the guard told him to stand on the sink. Rhodan, 23, claims that when he did as the guard instructed, he slipped and fell off the sink and onto the concrete floor, severely injuring his back. He said he had already required several surgeries related to his dwarfism.

Seattle, WA--Seattle police are defending the actions of officers that fired Taser stun guns several times into an innocent deaf man who had failed to follow their verbal orders. Officer Yvonne Tovar said she approached Bob Ross, 56, when she thought he was acting suspiciously in front of a pottery store. Tovar said Ross failed to follow her instructions to move away from the door and instead advanced quickly toward her with some objects raised in his hands. After she and fellow officers zapped Ross four separate times with Tasers and restrained him, they learned he was deaf and that he worked at the pottery store, but had arrived with some of his tools before the owner had opened it.

Education:

Albany, NY -- The New York State Board of Regents decided in September to continue its policy banning the use of aversive treatments of New York students until it reviews hundreds of public comments over the issue. The ban is directed primarily toward the Judge Rotenberg Education Center, in Canton, Massachusetts, where about 150 New York youths considered to have "behavior problems" are sent. The ban came in response to a series of news reports indicating that scores of students -- many with developmental disabilities -- were being zapped with electric skin shocks, and deprived of sleep and food as a way to change their behaviors.

Houston, TX--A former University of Houston student has filed suit against the school for allowing a professor to refuse his requests for accommodations. The accommodations had been recommended for Gary Bradford, 42, who was born without arms and uses a wheelchair, when he registered last fall to take some courses he needed for a music degree. He claims that after one teacher refused to allow the accommodations, the head of the department said such decisions were up to individual professors.

Canton, OH--A 9-year-old boy was arrested and charged with felony assault on the first day of school after he climbed onto a roof and threw rocks and a brick at his school's principal. Police said the student was "disorderly and agitated from something that happened inside the school", when he climbed out of a second-story window and onto the roof of a one-story section of Schreiber Elementary School. Principal Clifford Reynolds and firefighters were trying to talk him into coming back inside the building when officers came to arrest him and take him to a detention center. His mother, who arrived as her son was led away in handcuffs, said he has trouble communicating with people because he has a disability similar to autism.

Scituate, MA -- The family of Hailey Manduca, 8, has decided to home-school her rather than deal with a school district that has been resistant to her yellow Labrador-golden retriever mix, Independence. The parents of Hailey, who has osteogenesis imperfecta, more commonly known as 'brittle-bone disease', filed a complaint in August with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination to force the district to let the service dog come to school with Hailey to help her keep her balance.

Employment:

Seattle, WA --On September 14, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a federal lawsuit against Starbucks Corporation, accusing the coffee house giant of failing to provide reasonable accommodations for a former employee with psychiatric disabilities. An EEOC attorney said managers at a Starbucks in Seattle's Queen Anne neighborhood did accommodate Christine Drake's mental illnesses when they hired her as a barista, or coffee bar server, in September 2001. When a new manager took over, however, he allegedly scolded Drake in front of coworkers, reduced her hours, ignored her request for help and eventually fired her in May 2004.

Palo Alto, CA -- Social worker Cheryl Hewitt is fighting her employer -- the federal government -- claiming it fired her after it failed to accommodate her disability. Hewitt, who writes slowly because of cerebral palsy, accused the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System of firing her for violating patient confidentiality because she let a cousin help her write down patient information, including the last four digits of Social Security numbers.

Rochester, NY -- Thomas J. Wega has filed a $2.5 million federal discrimination lawsuit against his former employer, the Center for Disability Rights. Wega, 57, claims that when he worked as the director of human resources and training in 2003 and 2004, the independent living center failed to accommodate a disability he experiences from a 1994 stroke. Wega filed the suit after the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunities Commission adopted findings of the state Division of Human Rights, which had found no discrimination.

Institutions:

Salt Lake City, UT--Community advocates with Utah's Disabled Rights Action Committee and ADAPT Utah gathered outside the state's Health Department on August 21 to protest a rule that forces Medicaid recipients to stay in a nursing home for 90 days before they can receive services in their own homes. The protesters were also drawing attention to the fact that the state has not taken advantage of the federal government's "Money Follows the Person" initiative, which would allow people in nursing homes to take their Medicaid funding with them to pay for in-home supports.

Somerset, KY -- Kentucky health and family services officials told the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid in late September that a plan to switch operations of the state's largest institution to a regional nonprofit mental health board would improve conditions for its 250 residents with developmental disabilities. The federal agency has threatened to cut off over 40 million dollars in federal funds for Communities at Oakwood because of ongoing resident abuse. Between January 2005 and September 2006, the facility received 24 "Type A" citations, the kind given when conditions put residents at risk of serious injury or death. Fifteen Oakwood employees have been arrested in the last two years, charged with criminal abuse or neglect. The Secretary of Kentucky's Cabinet for Health and Family Services said in August that the problems in Oakwood "cannot be fixed".

Springfield, IL -- State officials are launching a one-year study to determine how to "improve" conditions at nine institutions that house about 2,700 people with developmental disabilities. The study was prompted by a controversy over the 2002 closure of Lincoln Developmental Center, which had been plagued with a series of investigations of abuse and neglect, and the building this year of four 10-bed "homes" on the campus. Gov. Rod Blagojevich had promised to reopen LDC as part of a campaign promise. But, as the buildings neared completion, he said he was not so sure reestablishing a state-run facility on the old grounds was the right thing to do. His budget for the fiscal year included no money for operating the "homes".

American Fork, UT--Advocates for community living are taking advantage of the state's debate over long-term care to push for closing the Utah State Developmental Center, a 75-year-old institution that houses people with developmental disabilities. During a legislative task force meeting on Medicaid, advocates suggested that the state sell the valuable land that the facility sits on and transfer its 230 residents -- along with the profits from the sale -- into homes in the community. Advocates pointed out that, while the Division of Services for People with Disabilities serves 4,000 Utahns, the agency spends 25 percent of its budget just to serve the 6 percent that are housed in the institution.

Progress:

New York, NY--After more than five years of development and negotiations, the language of a United Nations treaty to protect the rights of the world's 650 million people with disabilities was finally agreed upon in late August. As finalized, the Comprehensive and Integral International Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities had 40 articles addressing such issues as a right to be free from forced institutionalization; own and inherit property; participate in public and cultural life; receive an adequate standard of living; have access to affordable equipment; and have privacy protected. The draft also calls for eliminating barriers to employment, the environment, transportation, public facilities and communication, and for developing countries to receive help in implementing the treaty's provisions.

Lihue, HI--The U.S. Department of Justice announced on August 17 that an agreement had been made to settle a complaint against PONY Baseball Inc., filed by 11-year-old Justin Kapono "Pono" Tokioka and his parents Jimmy and Beth. The family had alleged that the organization violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by denying Pono access to a sign language interpreter during league games. In the settlement, PONY agreed to allow and provide sign language interpreters for players who are deaf or hard of hearing and change its rules and practices to give players with disabilities equal opportunities to participate in baseball and softball games.

Batavia, OH--David Valentine, 13, can keep his goats, as part of the settlement of lawsuit his parents filed against Miami Township officials. The zoning board had said that having the goats violated zoning codes. The family argued that the boy needed to raise the goats as a reasonable accommodation for his attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Denver, CO--Denver congratulated one of its own -- NBC's "Last Comic Standing" winner Josh Blue -- with what is being called the "world's shortest parade" in the city's downtown. In a routine that often centers on his cerebral palsy, Blue, 27, won the top spot on the reality television show's fourth season on August 9, beating out 10 other stand-up comics during the two-month competition. For his win, Blue was awarded an exclusive talent contract with NBC and his own half-hour special on the Bravo cable network.

In other news:

Washington, DC--Following revelations that alleged would-be terrorists plotted to destroy airliners bound for the United States from London's Heathrow Airport, the federal Transportation Security Administration announced new rules on August 10 for what passengers can and cannot take on board commercial flights. For example, while passengers are banned from carrying on board any liquids, gels, or lotions, those with prescription medications are allowed to bring on board -- in a clear plastic bag -- enough to sustain them through a flight. Sanitary items such as incontinence briefs, diapers, wipes, and creams can be taken on board, but only as much as would be needed for the duration of the flight.

Chicago, IL -- Attorneys with the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law said they would again ask a federal judge in Chicago to decide whether a new rule, which requires Medicaid recipients to prove they are U.S. citizens, violates their due process rights. A District Court judge ruled on September 19 that groups impacted by the law might have legal standing to challenge the rule, but not the nonprofit law center. The center filed the suit in June on behalf of low-income citizens -- primarily people with disabilities, residents of nursing homes, and victims of natural disasters -- who might not be able to provide original birth certificates.

Springfield, MO--County health officials have banned a woman from taking her bonnet macaque monkey, Richard, into eating establishments until she can prove it can perform certain tasks or is otherwise covered as a service animal under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Debby Rose says her monkey is a service animal because he helps with her anxiety symptoms so she can get out of the house and enjoy such activities as shopping and dining out. The county had allowed the monkey to go with Rose into eateries until diners at a buffet-style restaurant reportedly complained that the animal was disruptive and visited the food bar, a claim that Rose denies.

Oceans Springs, MS--The Federal Emergency Management Agency has agreed to settle a class-action lawsuit, filed earlier this year on behalf of 11 Gulf Coast residents with disabilities, which accused the agency of failing to provide accessible trailers in a timely manner after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The plaintiffs claimed that the agency's delays violated the federal Fair Housing Act, Architectural Barriers Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and other federal anti-discrimination laws. FEMA agreed to correct the problems, but did not have to admit liability.

Alliance, OH--A radio contest many listeners found offensive was taken off the air and its host suspended for one week following protests by parents and advocates of people with developmental disabilities. A WZKL Q92 disc jockey, known only under the on-air name "Igor", apologized at the start of his August 30 shift for running the segment he called "Name That Tune with Mongoloid Mike". The contest had contestants guess the title of a song, the words of which were mumbled by a caller trying to imitate a person with an intellectual disability.

Coldwater, MI--Under orders from Governor Jennifer Granholm, authorities have performed an independent evaluation of Jack Kevorkian's medical condition to determine whether the 78-year-old assisted suicide campaigner should be released from prison before his June 2007 parole hearing. On at least four separate occasions, Kevorkian's attorney has unsuccessfully pushed for his client's early release on grounds that his health is failing and would likely not survive a year. Kevorkian is serving 10 to 25 years in prison for assisting in the death of a man with amyotropic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

New York, NY--Deron Johnson was arrested and charged with robbery on September 14, after being treated at Harlem Hospital for a bullet wound to the elbow. Police said Mr. Johnson tried to steal a necklace from 57-year-old wheelchair user Margaret Johnson, who happened to be on her way to a local shooting range to target practice. Ms. Johnson, who is not related, pulled out her .357 magnum pistol and fired it at her assailant. "I feel bad, but it was his choice," she told the New York Daily News.

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