Category Archives: State, Local & Other News

Galaxy Report

Maine housing settlement approved

Map of Maine

 

The U.S. District Court for the District of Maine approved a legal settlement May 2 requiring the state of Maine to expand community living options for people with cerebral palsy and other physical disabilities.

The settlement, first announced in September

Leave a comment | Posted in State, Local & Other News | Tagged , , ,
Galaxy Report

DOJ intervenes in Oregon, sheltered workshops case

Oregon Map

The U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division has filed an amicus brief on behalf of a group of disability advocacy groups who are suing the state of Oregon for violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act in its system …

Leave a comment | Posted in State, Local & Other News | Tagged , ,
Galaxy Report

California looking to clamp down on ADA lawsuits

The word costs in a clamp

A new bill moving through the California legislature would make it significantly more difficult for lawyers to sue California business owners for failing to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

By a 4-1 vote, the state Senate Judiciary Committee …

Leave a comment | Posted in State, Local & Other News | Tagged , ,
Galaxy Report

Kansas delays planned Medicaid changes after massive disability protests

Photo of Kansas Flag

More than 800 advocates for people with disabilities, operating under the banner of “Don’t Gamble with Our Lives,” swarmed into Topeka on April 25 to rally against a highly publicized plan to hand over control of the state’s Medicaid services …

Leave a comment | Also posted in Front Page Feature | Tagged , ,
Galaxy Report

Court approves settlement in Massachusetts prison case

Hands on prison bars

A Massachusetts plan to expand protections for inmates with mental illnesses in its state prisons received court approval April 12.

The Disability Law Center of Massachusetts filed a class action lawsuit against the state Department of Corrections in 2007, accusing …

Leave a comment | Also posted in Front Page Feature | Tagged , , ,
Galaxy Report

NYC taxi case argued at the 2nd Circuit

Yellow Taxi Sign

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit heard arguments this week on a controversial ruling in December, where a federal district court ruled that New York City’s taxicab fleet violates Americans with Disabilities Act public accessibility requirements.…

Leave a comment | Also posted in Front Page Feature | Tagged ,
Galaxy Report

Circuit court strikes down New York integration plan for people with mental disabilities

Square justice scale closeup on blue

The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled April 6 that Disability Advocates Inc. did not have “standing” in a lawsuit where the advocacy group won a major victory in 2009 when a district court ruled that …

Leave a comment | Also posted in Front Page Feature | Tagged , , ,
Galaxy Report

DOJ investigating Georgia’s special education system

Pencils in a circle

The Southern Poverty Law Center announced April 5 that the U.S. Department of Justice is opening an investigation into whether the state of Georgia’s education system violates the Americans with Disabilities Act by unnecessarily segregating special education students into isolated …

Leave a comment | Also posted in Front Page Feature | Tagged , ,
Galaxy Report

Disturbing video released of Judge Rotenberg Center “skin shock treatment”

Massachusetts map

Jurors at a trial in a lawsuit against the controversial Boston-area Judge Rotenberg Center were exposed to a disturbing video April 11 of a child being submitted to its controversial “skin shock treatment.”

The video shows a child, a teenager with …

1 Comment | Also posted in Front Page Feature | Tagged ,