U.S. Department
of Justice
Disability Rights Cases
State of Nebraska
On May 14, 2024, the United States sent a letter of findings to the State of Nebraska, notifying the State that it is unnecessarily segregating people with serious mental illness (SMI) in violation of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Following an investigation into Nebraska's behavioral health service system, the Department of Justice concluded that Nebraska fails to provide its citizens with SMI with the services they need to live and work in their homes and communities. As a result, Nebraskans with SMI often have no options other moving into assisted living facilities and spending their days in segregated day programs with no path to employment.
State of Rhode Island and Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth, and Families
On May 13, 2024, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Rhode Island, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights, sent a letter of findings to the State of Rhode Island, notifying the State that it is violating Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act by unnecessarily segregating children with mental health and developmental disabilities in an acute-care psychiatric hospital. Following an investigation into Rhode Island’s behavioral health care system for children in the care and custody of its state child welfare agency, the United States found that the State failed to provide services to children in the most integrated settings appropriate to their needs, resulting in children being routinely and unnecessarily segregated at a psychiatric hospital. Although the needs of children with behavioral health disabilities could be met in settings less restrictive than hospitals, hundreds of children in the care and custody of the State have instead languished at Bradley Hospital simply because the State has failed to ensure sufficient capacity of community-based services and prompt and effective discharge
U.S. v. Springfield Clinic, LLC
On May 7, 2024, the United States Attorney's Office for the Central District of Illinois executed a settlement agreement with Springfield Clinic LLC pursuant to Title III of the ADA. The settlement agreement resolved a complaint from an individual who has a vision disability that the Springfield Clinic’s website and web-based services were not accessible because the Clinic’s patient and records request portals did not work with screen readers. The agreement requires the Clinic to adopt and implement a web accessibility policy; ensure that all its websites, web content, mobile applications, web-based services, and contractors will conform with the standards published by the World Wide Web Consortium (“W3C”), including Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (“WCAG”) 2.1 AA; designate a web accessibility coordinator; and provide training to staff, reporting to the United States, and compensatory damages to the complainant.
Tidewater Community College
On May 6, 2021 the United States executed a settlement agreement with Tidewater Community College under Title II of the ADA regarding its program access, as part of the Section's Veterans Access Program. The agreement ensures veterans and other individuals with disabilities will have access to education programs, services, facilities, and activities at Tidewater Community College, which is comprised of 1/3 military and veteran students, and has the largest African American undergraduate enrollment in Virginia.
City of Virginia Beach, Virginia
On April 18, 2024, the Justice Department entered into a settlement agreement under Title II of the ADA with the City of Virginia Beach, VA, a jurisdiction that has one of the highest concentrations of veterans in the country, many with service-connected disabilities. Under the agreement, the City will ensure the accessibility of its facilities, curb ramps, websites, and emergency management procedures, that it provides effective communication in its programs, and that it trains City staff about the requirements of the ADA.
United States v. West Memphis School District
On April 8, 2024, the United States filed a lawsuit against the West Memphis School District in Arkansas alleging the school district denied an employee with a disability temporary telework as a reasonable accommodation in violation of Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The lawsuit also alleges that the school district denied the accommodation request without discussing it, or possible alternative accommodations, with the employee. As a result of the denial, the employee was forced to resign.
Utah Department of Corrections
On March 12, 2024, the Justice Department issued a letter notifying UDOC that it violated the ADA by discriminating against an incarcerated transgender woman on the basis of her disability, gender dysphoria. The letter outlined the minimum remedial measures UDOC must take to address the violations identified and invited UDOC to work with the United States to reach an appropriate resolution.
On April 2, 2024, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the State of Utah and the Utah Department of Corrections (UDOC) alleging UDOC violated Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by discriminating against an incarcerated transgender woman on the basis of her disability, gender dysphoria. The complaint alleges that UDOC failed to provide the complainant with equal access to health care services and failed to make reasonable modifications to its policies and practices to avoid discrimination on the basis of disability.
On July 10, 2024, the Justice Department filed its Opposition to Defendant's Motion to Dismiss the United States' complaint. In our brief, we explained that gender dysphoria is not excluded from the ADA's definition of disability in 42 U.S.C. § 12211(b)(1) because, contrary to Defendants' arguments, gender dysphoria is not a “sexual behavior disorder” or a “gender identity disorder.”
On January 29, 2025, the Justice Department dismissed the case.
In Re: New York City Police Department
On March 29, 2024, the United States issued a letter of findings to the New York City Police Department (NYPD) under Title II of the ADA regarding the lack of accessibility of the pedestrian grid caused by the NYPD’s widespread practice of permitting NYPD and New York City-permitted vehicles to park on sidewalks and in crosswalks. That letter demanded that the NYPD address the violations identified by taking corrective actions, including reforming parking policies and parking-enforcement trainings in addition to establishing procedures to hold accountable NYPD and New York City employees who park, or allow others to park, in manners that result in violations of the ADA.
Volusia County School Board
On August 2, 2021, the United States executed a settlement agreement with the Volusia County School Board on behalf of the Volusia County School District (VCS) under Title II of the ADA. The settlement agreement resolved allegations that the district punished students with disabilities for their disability-related behavior and denied them equal access to VCS’ programs and services through unnecessary removals from the classroom. Under the agreement, VCS will revise and implement policies and practices to comply with the ADA, particularly those relating to attendance and removals, discipline, law enforcement involvement, and behavioral interventions and supports, provide staff training on the ADA, retain an outside behavioral supports consultant, and establish an ADA complaint procedure and tracking system.
On March 20, 2024, the United States announced a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with VCS to extend the term of the 2021 settlement agreement by two years. The MOA also amends the settlement agreement to require VCS to take additional critical steps to achieve compliance with the ADA. Under the agreement, VCS will implement a robust training program, as well as new procedures that govern law enforcement contact with students with disabilities and ensure that students receive appropriate behavioral supports.
Individuals with information related to the department’s investigation and the district’s compliance with the settlement agreement are encouraged to report such information by email at vcs.compliance@usdoj.gov.
T.G. vs Maryland Department of Human Services
On March 4, 2024, the Justice Department filed a statement of interest explaining how the integration mandate of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act applies to children who have been medically cleared for discharge from psychiatric institutions but who remain institutionalized because of the lack of available community placement. The statement of interest was filed in T.G. v. Maryland Department of Human Services, a lawsuit on behalf of a proposed class of children with mental health disabilities in the state’s foster care system who are institutionalized in psychiatric hospitals and other institutional settings, despite being medically cleared for discharge, due to a lack of available community-based services. The department’s brief explains that the ADA’s integration mandate requires states to provide services to people with disabilities in the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs when they do not oppose such services, and when such placement can be reasonably accommodated. The statement also explains that (1) plaintiffs’ eligibility for a program makes them qualified under the ADA; (2) a treatment professional’s approval of a plaintiff for discharge establishes that the plaintiff is appropriate for a more integrated setting; and (3) a claim under Title II’s integration mandate does not require a showing of discriminatory intent, disparate treatment, or disparate impact.
U.S. v. Los Angeles County
On August 1, 2024, the Department of Justice reached an agreement with Los Angeles County to resolve its lawsuit alleging that the county violated the ADA by denying voters with disabilities an equal opportunity to participate in its voting programs, services, and activities when it failed to select and use facilities as polling places that are accessible to persons with disabilities. The lawsuit was filed in June 2023 after an investigation that found the county excluded individuals with disabilities from participating in its in-person voting programs by selecting and using vote centers with architectural barriers. The lawsuit also alleged that the county’s curbside voting program was inaccessible. Under the settlement agreement, the county will work with an independent accessibility expert for three years on site selection policies and procedures to ensure that the county selects locations to serve as voting centers that are, or can be made more accessible during the voting period. The county has agreed to work with the expert and the department to implement recommendations. The expert will provide semiannual reports on their findings to the county and the department.
Lincoln Public Schools
On August 15, 2024, the United States filed a Complaint and proposed Consent Decree to resolve allegations that Lincoln Public Schools (LPS) violates Title II of the ADA by denying some deaf and hard of hearing students an equal opportunity to attend their neighborhood schools or participate in the high school choice program. The Complaint alleges that until 2024, LPS applied a blanket policy requiring students believed to need American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation to attend cluster schools serving deaf and hard of hearing students. Under the proposed Consent Decree, LPS has agreed to pay $12,000 to compensate individuals the policy harmed; end its blanket policy of requiring deaf and hard of hearing students believed to need ASL to attend a cluster school; adopt non-discrimination policies and complaint procedures; designate an ADA coordinator; train staff and provide reports to the department during a monitoring period.