U.S. Department
of Justice
Disability Rights Cases
Sangamon County Sheriff's Office, Sangamon County Central Dispatch System, and Sangamon County
On January 16, 2025, the United States entered an agreement with the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office, the Sangamon County Central Dispatch System, and Sangamon County, Illinois, under Title II of the ADA and other federal statutes regarding race and disability discrimination in the provision of policing and dispatch services. The United States investigated after a Black woman with a mental health disability was killed by an Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office deputy. Under the agreement, the entities will review and update policies, rules, and procedures and provide training on a variety of topics, including non-discriminatory policing and interactions with individuals with behavioral health disabilities. The agreement requires the development of a mobile crisis team program, which will include trained behavioral health staff who timely respond to individuals needing urgent behavioral health assistance. The agreement sets forth a framework for data collection and reporting, among other provisions.
Cox v. City of Boston
On December 3, 2024, the United States filed a Statement of Interest in Cox v. City of Boston, No. 1:22-cv-11009 (D. Mass.) addressing the correct interpretation of the health services exception in the ADA as applied to a police department. The health services exception is an exception to the ADA’s exclusion of individuals who currently illegally use drugs, and states that “an individual shall not be denied health services, or services provided in connection with drug rehabilitation, on the basis of the current illegal use of drugs if the individual is otherwise entitled to such services.” 42 U.S.C. § 12210(c). Under Title II of the ADA, the Exception applies to the denial of health services provided by any public entity covered by Title II, including state and local police departments. The case was brought by the estate of an individual with opioid use disorder, who died of an opioid overdose while in overnight detention after being arrested by the Boston Police Department.
Wisconsin Department of Corrections
On September 30, 2024, the Justice Department entered into a settlement agreement under Title II of the ADA with the Wisconsin Department of Corrections (WDOC) to ensure that incarcerated individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing have equal access to WDOC’s programs, services, and activities, including educational, counseling, medical, recreational, and prison employment programs. Under the agreement, WDOC will provide inmates with hearing disabilities appropriate auxiliary aids and services, such as sign language interpreters, video telephones, visual notification systems, and hearing aids. WDOC will also develop individualized communication assessments and plans; provide training on the ADA to staff; and pay $15,000 to compensate three incarcerated individuals who were harmed.
City of Anoka, Minnesota
On November 7, 2023, the United States issued a letter of findings concluding that the City of Anoka, Minnesota, violated Title II of the ADA and the Fair Housing Act by denying tenants with mental health disabilities an equal opportunity to receive emergency assistance. The City, through enforcement of its so-called “crime free” housing ordinance and by sharing confidential medical information relating to calls for emergency service with all landlords, deterred individuals with mental health disabilities and those associated with them from calling for emergency help and threatened their current housing or future housing prospects.
On May 21, 2024, the United States filed a complaint and the parties entered a proposed consent decree to resolve its findings. Under the proposed consent decree, the City has agreed to pay $175,000 to compensate harmed individuals; end its practice of publicizing the disability, medical, and health information of individuals with mental health disabilities; adopt non-discrimination policies and complaint procedures; notify landlords, property owners, and tenants of changes to the program; designate an ADA coordinator; train staff; and report to the United States.
State of Tennessee and the Shelby County District Attorney General's Office
On May 22, 2024, the United States filed its Opposition Brief in response to Defendant State and TBI's Motion to Dismiss. The United States' brief argues that (1) the United States may enforce Title II, and Defendants’ interpretation disregards the remedies Congress incorporated into Title II; (2) the breadth of Title II’s coverage encompasses Tennessee’s implementation and enforcement of its aggravated prostitution statute; (3) Tennessee and the TBI are proper defendants to this suit; and (4) any arguments about the scope of the relief are improper at the motion to dismiss.
On May 16, 2024, the United States entered into a settlement agreement with the Shelby County District Attorney General's Office (DA). The DA has agreed not to prosecute individuals living with HIV under Tennessee’s aggravated prostitution law. The DA will also adopt reforms to correct discrimination against people living with HIV who were subjected to harsher penalties under the law. The aggravated prostitution statute elevates what would otherwise be misdemeanor conduct to a felony because the individual has HIV, regardless of any actual risk of harm. Aggravated prostitution is also categorized as a “violent sexual offense” mandating registration as a sex offender, in most cases for life.
On February 15, 2024, the United States filed a complaint against the State of Tennessee and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) for violating Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The complaint alleges that the State and the TBI subject people to harsher criminal penalties solely because of their human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) status by maintaining and enforcing Tennessee’s aggravated prostitution statute.
On December 1, 2023, the United States issued a letter of findings to the State, the TBI, and the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office notifying them that they violated the ADA by maintaining and enforcing the state’s aggravated prostitution statute. That letter of findings asked the State, the TBI, and the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office to stop enforcing the aggravated prostitution law, to remove affected individuals from the registry, and to take other measures to redress the discrimination.
Utah Department of Corrections
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 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 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.
United States v. Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania
On January 31, 2024, the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania (UJS) agreed to pay $100,000 and to encourage all its component courts to adopt new policies to ensure that individuals under Pennsylvania state court supervision can take lawfully prescribed medications to treat opioid use disorder (OUD). The settlement agreement resolved the Justice Department's lawsuit against the UJS, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, and the Blair, Jefferson, Lackawanna and Northumberland County Courts of Common Pleas.
The United States filed its original complaint on February 24, 2022, asserting that UJS courts violated Title II of the ADA by implementing administrative policies categorically limiting or prohibiting the use of lawfully prescribed medication for the treatment of OUD by individuals in court supervision programs. The United States had previously notified the UJS that its courts had engaged in discrimination in a letter of findings issued on February 2, 2022. The District Court dismissed the United States' original complaint on April 21, 2023, without prejudice and the United States filed an amended complaint on May 22, 2023. A second motion to dismiss by the Defendants and an opposition filed by the United States were pending before the court at the time of resolution.
Press Release Letter of Findings
Press Release Settlement Agreement
Doe v. Georgia Department of Corrections
On January 8, 2024, the Justice Department filed a statement of interest explaining that gender dysphoria can be a covered disability under the ADA. The statement of interest was filed in Doe v. Georgia Department of Corrections, a private lawsuit by a transgender woman alleging that she is receiving inadequate medical treatment for her gender dysphoria while incarcerated, in violation of Titles II and III of the ADA, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and the Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The Department's statement clarifies that gender dysphoria can be a covered disability under the ADA and is not subject to the ADA’s exclusion of gender identity disorders.
City of Miami Beach
On January 3, 2024, the United States executed a settlement agreement with the city of Miami Beach to resolve its claims that the city violated Title I of the ADA by asking police applicants to take medical and psychological exams too early in the hiring process. Under the agreement, the city will ensure that its hiring practices comply with the ADA, including the timing of medical examinations, and will train its employees on this requirement. When requested, the city will provide an applicant whose conditional job offer is revoked with the reason why, including any medical or disability-related reasons. The city will also host a training on the ADA and best practices for background investigations for representatives from Florida’s municipal and county law enforcement agencies.
Strickland v. Delaware County
On December 11, 2023, the Department of Justice filed a statement of interest in Strickland v. Delaware County, a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in which the plaintiff alleged that the George W. Hill Correctional Facility in Delaware County unlawfully denied him access to methadone that he was taking to treat OUD under the supervision of a qualified medical provider before his incarceration. The plaintiff further alleged that the jail had a blanket policy of only providing access to methadone for pregnant individuals and that all other individuals on methadone when entering the jail were put through medically supervised withdrawal. The department's statement of interest explains that Title II of the ADA prohibits jails from categorically restricting access to Food and Drug Administration-approved OUD medications, like methadone, without individually assessing whether the person being denied access needs that medication to effectively treat their disability.
Allegheny County Jail
On November 30, 2023, Allegheny County agreed to offer treatment with any FDA-approved medication for opioid use disorder (OUD) to all individuals booked into the Allegheny County Jail (ACJ) for whom such treatment is medically appropriate. The County also agreed to pay $10,000 to an individual the United States alleged was unlawfully denied access to methadone in violation of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Under the three-year agreement, Allegheny County will implement new policies and personnel training programs to ensure that people with OUD incarcerated at ACJ receive medically appropriate treatment for their disability. This includes ensuring that all individuals who were receiving OUD medication from a licensed treatment provider before their incarceration are continued on that medication. The County will also offer the option to all individuals with OUD booked into ACJ to receive treatment with any FDA-approved OUD medication that is medically appropriate even if they were not being treated with that medication before their incarceration.
Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry
On July 19, 2023, the Justice Department sent a letter to the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry (ADCRR), notifying ADCRR that it violated Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act by discriminating against individuals with vision disabilities. Following an investigation of multiple complaints by incarcerated individuals, the Department found that ADCRR failed to reasonably modify its policies or provide auxiliary aids and services, such as Brailled materials, audio recordings, and screen reader software, to ensure that people with disabilities could communicate effectively while incarcerated. ADCRR failed to provide accessible processes for requesting accommodations or filing disability-related complaints. ADCRR also over relied on other incarcerated people to help people with vision disabilities without properly training or supervising those providing help.
On November 16, 2023, the Justice Department executed a settlement agreement with ADCRR to correct and prevent discrimination against incarcerated people with vision disabilities and to resolve the Justice Department's findings. Under the three-year agreement, ADCRR will retain an expert consultant to help revise its policies and practices, train its personnel, and provide necessary modifications, aids and services, and assistive technology to people with vision disabilities in ADCRR custody. ADCRR will regularly report to the department and adopt robust screening and documentation procedures to ensure people with vision disabilities are provided with any aids and services they need throughout their incarceration. ADCRR will also designate a systemwide ADA Administrator and Facility ADA Coordinators to ensure consistent implementation of the agreement across all state facilities.