Press Releases & Statements

Suit follows years of documented disability and race discrimination by the District

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Sept. 6, 2019) – A coalition of nonprofit advocacy groups filed a lawsuit today against the Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD), Superintendent Jorge A. Aguilar, and others on behalf of the Black Parallel School Board and three students in the District. The suit alleges flagrant districtwide discrimination against students with disabilities, especially Black students.

Sacramento (August 13, 2019) Disability Rights California (DRC), the agency mandated by federal law to protect and advocate for Californians with disabilities opposes the “public charge” rule that the Trump Administration finalized yesterday, which threatens thousands of California residents’ access to healthcare and crucial benefits, and is particularly harmful and discriminatory against immigrants with disabilities. 

Section 1557 of the ACA prohibits discrimination in health care on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, and disability. 

Print-only Notices Result in Financial Penalties for Blind Taxpayers

San Francisco, CA - (July 25, 2019) - Berkeley businesswoman Karen Rose, who is blind, was about to throw away what she thought was junk mail when a friend noticed that it was from the IRS. It turned out to be a second notice that she owed nearly $25,000 in additional taxes. When she contacted the agency, she learned that she had also incurred an additional $1,500 in interest and penalties because she hadn’t responded to the first notice.

(Santa Ana, CA - July 23, 2019) Today, People’s Homeless Task Force, represented by Disability Rights California and Latham & Watkins, reached a class action settlement. As a result of the lawsuit filed February 7, 2018, the settlement with the County of Orange alleges that the county efforts connecting homeless individuals with the appropriate services failed to be accessible for people with disabilities and cited the experience of seven Riverbed residents.

(Sacramento, CA - June 28, 2019) This week, on behalf of the over 14,000 unaccompanied immigrant children in United States custody, Disability Rights California (DRC) published its findings and recommendations in response to a nearly year-long monitoring of nine Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) grantee facilities across the state of California. These nine ORR grantee facilities and programs contain approximately 300 beds for unaccompanied children. Many of these children experience trauma, symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and other mental health disabilities.

(Sacramento, CA - June 20, 2019) Today, on behalf of the nearly 4,000 people incarcerated in Sacramento County’s jails, Disability Rights California, Prison Law Office, and Cooley LLP reached a proposed settlement with the County to address the dangerous and unconstitutional conditions of the County’s jails. The settlement of this class action lawsuit, Mays v. County of Sacramento, E.D. Cal. No. 2:18-cv-02081-TLN-KJN (PC), which is subject to court approval, is a result of extensive negotiations.

San Francisco, Calif., (April 8, 2019) – A federal judge granted preliminary approval for settlement of a class action lawsuit that will enable children and youth with complex medical needs to get the in-home nursing they need to remain healthy and safe. The judge’s ruling will allow the state to inform over 4,000 affected families about the settlement, giving them a chance to weigh in before granting final approval.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – On Friday, civil rights groups prevailed in their lawsuit against Secretary of State Alex Padilla to expand voter registration at agencies in the state that serve people on public assistance and individuals with disabilities. San Francisco County Superior Court Judge Ethan P. Schulman ruled Padilla must require voter registration at additional agencies and contractors serving Californians throughout the state. More than 1.8 million Californians will benefit from the ruling.  

(Los Angeles, CA – March 5, 2019) An investigation by Disability Rights California (DRC) finds conditions at the Adelanto Detention Center, one of the largest privately operated immigration detention facilities in the United States, pose serious risks to people with mental illness and other disabilities.

(Sacramento, CA – February 12, 2019) Today the Prison Law Office, Disability Rights California, and Cooley LLP filed a motion in federal court to halt the unconstitutional use of solitary confinement for people with serious mental illness and the denial of adequate mental health care to people in the Sacramento County Jails.

Homeless people with only their vehicles as shelter are hopeful the San Diego City Council will finally vote on February 5 to repeal the Vehicle Habitation Ordinance (VHO). The ordinance prohibits homeless people, many with disabilities, from living in their vehicles.

Alex Montoya, who wears prosthetics on both arms and his right leg, used to enjoy walking in his East Village neighborhood where he lives.  No longer.  Now he fears for his safety because every day he is dodging scooters travelling at high speeds down the sidewalk. Several times scooters strewn across his path also have caused him to nearly trip.

(Sacramento, CA) Disability Rights California is saddened to learn of the death of the 13-year-old student with disabilities who died after being restrained by staff at Guiding Hands School last week. This is a horrific tragedy and our hearts go out to the student’s family.

We do not know all of the facts in this particular situation, but the reported facts surrounding the death are cause for great concern. The facts reported about the incident indicate that it involved a prone restraint, a practice known to be dangerous and life threatening. 

WHAT:    

Disability Rights California (DRC) celebrates 40 years of advocating for equality, dignity, independence and freedom for people with disabilities. As part of its celebration, DRC honors current and former state lawmakers, as well as other leaders in the disability community.