ENFORCEMENT HIGHLIGHTS

to criminal interrogations. The agreement resolved three complaints involving three separate incidents between 1994 and 1997 where the Oakland Police allegedly failed to provide appropriate auxiliary aids and services to arrestees with hearing impairments. In one instance, an individual was denied pencil and paper with which to communicate with jail staff. In another, a deaf individual who had borrowed an automobile from a friend was unable to make a telephone call for approximately seven hours (because no operable TTY or text telephone was available) to clear up charges that he had stolen the automobile. Under the agreement, the police department will adopt policies for providing effective communication and publish and publicize them as official operating procedures. It also agreed to purchase an additional TTY, train jail personnel on how to operate TTY’s, and initiate a testing program to ensure the TTY’s are functioning properly. The Oakland Police will also ensure that one of the jail cells that provides a television set has closed captioning capability. All of the approximately 700 officers who deal with the public will receive extensive ADA training on how to implement the ADA’s effective communication requirements in typical police situations. This instruction will be provided during annual police academy training that all officers are required to attend.

Supreme Court Says ADA Clearly Protects Prison Inmates -- In a unanimous opinion the Supreme Court ruled in Pennsylvania Department of Corrections v. Yeskey that a motivational boot camp operated for selected inmates by the Pennsylvania State prison system was subject to the requirements of the ADA. Prisoners who successfully complete the boot camp program were entitled to a significant reduction in their sentence. The Court agreed with the Department of Justice in ruling that the broad language of the ADA clearly covered prisons and provided no basis for distinguishing programs, services, or activities of prisons from those provided by other public entities. It rejected the State's arguments that the law was ambiguous and that prisoners cannot be “qualified individuals with disabilities” because they are not in prison voluntarily.

DOJ Document -- “Commonly Asked Questions About the ADA and Law Enforcement” addresses the ADA obligations of police departments in interacting with the public, including effective communication, program accessibility, and reasonable modifications in policies, practices, and procedures.

Houston Police, Courts, and Jail to Improve Communication with Deaf Individuals -- The City of Houston agreed to significantly improve the way its municipal courts system, police department, and jail communicate with people who are deaf or hard of hearing. Under the settlement, the Houston police, courts, and jails would each appoint an ADA coordinator, purchase TTY devices that will enable the agencies to communicate effectively by telephone with deaf TTY users, and train staff in how to operate the devices.

The Houston Police Department will --

• Adopt a new “General Order” instructing police officers on how to interact with witnesses, victims, and suspected criminals who are deaf or hard of hearing;

• Require that a qualified interpreter be called in any time a person who is deaf and needs an interpreter is involved in a major accident, is suspected of a felony, is under arrest, is being given a test measuring alcohol consumption, or is giving a statement in a case; and

• Provide training about the new procedures for every officer at the rank of sergeant and above, and ensure that the new General Order is discussed with every officer during roll call.

ENFORCING THE ADA -- JULY 26, 2000 • SPECIAL TENTH ANNIVERSARY EDITION 7

ENFORCEMENT HIGHLIGHTS

The city jail will --
• Inform all people under arrest, who are deaf or hard of hearing, that they have a right to auxiliary aids and services at every step of the criminal justice process;

• Maintain a list of qualified interpreters, who generally will be available within one hour of a request; and,

• Ensure that there is effective communication between persons who are deaf or hard of hearing and the medical staff at the jail health clinic.

In addition, the municipal court system will --

• Adopt a new written policy guaranteeing appropriate auxiliary aids and services for participants in court proceedings, including parties, witnesses, jurors, and spectators;

• Provide information about the new policies on all official notices of court dates, including tickets, summonses, and other similar notices, and publish notices in legal periodicals that reach the city’s legal community; and

• Provide training on the new policies for every judge and court administrator.

B. Opening Up Jobs for Persons with Disabilities

The ADA is lowering barriers to educational and professional advancement faced by many people with disabilities. The Department has attacked discrimination in pension and retirement benefits and the failure to provide reasonable accommodations. It has enforced the right to testing accommodations,to accessible educational facilities, and to be free from undue requests by professional licensing authorities for personal and private information about physical or mental conditions.

1. Ensuring Equal Employment Opportunity

Illinois Remedies Pension Discrimination -- In response to a suit filed by the Department of Justice, Illinois enacted legislation to eliminate discriminatory provisions in its police and fire pension code. The Department had sued the board of trustees of the Aurora police pension fund, the City of Aurora, and the State for excluding police officers and firefighters from the City’s pension funds on the basis of disability. Under the challenged system, police officers and firefighters were required to undergo separate physical examinations after they were hired to determine eligibility for retirement and disability benefits. Even though they were performing successfully on the job, police officers and firefighters could be denied disability and retirement benefits.

ENFORCING THE ADA -- JULY 26, 2000 • SPECIAL TENTH ANNIVERSARY EDITION 8

 

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