Federal Court Finds City of Los Angeles Discriminates Against People with Disabilities in Emergency Plans

NEWS RELEASE                                                              
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 11, 2011

CONTACTS:
Sid Wolinsky, Disability Rights Advocates – 510- 665- 8644
Karla Gilbride, Disability Rights Advocates – 510- 665- 8644
Shawna Parks, Disability Rights Legal Center –213- 736-1477
Joseph Sorrentino, Disability Rights Legal Center – 213-736-8307

FEDERAL COURT FINDS CITY OF LOS ANGELES DISCRIMINATES AGAINST PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IN EMERGENCY PLANS

Los Angeles – In a landmark decision, which has national implications, a federal court ruled today that the City of Los Angeles violated federal law, including the Americans with Disabilities Act, by failing to meet the needs of its residents with disabilities in planning for natural and other disasters. The ruling is the first such decision in the country.

Federal Judge Consuelo B. Marshall held: “[T]he Court finds that Plaintiffs are denied the benefits of the City's emergency preparedness program because the City's practice of failing to address the needs of individuals with disabilities discriminates against such individuals by denying them meaningful access to the City's emergency preparedness program." The Court further held that “Because of the City’s failure to address their unique needs, individuals with disabilities are disproportionately vulnerable to harm in the event of an emergency or disaster.” The Court ordered the City within 3 weeks to meet with the plaintiffs to prepare a proposal for remedying the violations.

The Plaintiffs are represented by two prominent non-profit law firms that specialize in civil rights cases for people with disabilities: Disability Rights Advocates (“DRA”), headquartered in Berkeley, California and Disability Rights Legal Center (“DRLC”), located in Los Angeles.

The federal class action lawsuit, brought on behalf of all people with disabilities in Los Angeles, was filed in January  2009 by Plaintiffs Audrey Harthorn and Communities Actively Living Independent and Free (“CALIF”), a nonprofit independent living center located in downtown Los Angeles.

Despite the fact that Los Angeles has experienced serious disasters, the City of Los Angeles lacks adequate disaster planning for people with disabilities, such as accessible emergency shelters, plans for providing services and medication at shelters, accessible transportation and evacuation assistance as well as communication services that are  available and accessible to people with a wide range of disabilities.

Los Angeles is particularly disaster-prone and susceptible to a variety of emergencies, including earthquakes, fires, landslides, and terrorist attacks. The City experienced and suffered from the massive Northridge earthquake in 1994, as well as wildfires in 2008 and 2009.

Today’s landmark ruling highlights a national problem evident during Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, when people with disabilities, including many seniors who were seriously ill , were left behind to die because of a lack of disability planning.  Those tragedies prompted this action on behalf of the residents of Los Angeles.   

Karla Gilbride, a DRA Attorney representing the plaintiffs said, “We are pleased with the Judge’s decision to ensure that L.A., which is home to more than half a million people with disabilities, plans for the safety of all of its residents.” 

Sid Wolinsky, DRA Litigation Director said, “We cannot tolerate another Katrina when disabled men, women and children were neglected. DRA and DRLC have worked with other cities such as Oakland and Richmond to develop emergency plans that include people with disabilities. There is no reason why every city in this country should not be well prepared to meet the needs of disabled people.”   

“The Court’s decision is not just a victory for people with disabilities and seniors but for all Los Angeles residents who need to know that our city is prepared when disaster strikes. These will be life and death issues for thousands of people with disabilities in the event of a major disaster,” stated Shawna L. Parks, DRLC’s Legal Director also representing the Plaintiffs. “We are hopeful that other cities will examine their emergency preparations as a result of this lawsuit to avoid the needless loss of life during any future emergencies.”

Audrey Harthorn, Plaintiff and resident of Los Angeles said, “As a wheelchair user who lives alone, I am relieved that L.A. will now consider the needs of its citizens with disabilities and that I will have a better chance of getting the help I need when the next disaster strikes.”        

Lilibeth Navarro, Executive Director of CALIF says “This is society’s moral duty to people with disabilities. The Court’s decision confirms what we already knew, that the City has failed to address the needs of people with disabilities in emergency planning. The City must now take action to address this critical issue.”

The court’s decision can be found at:

www.disabilityrightslegalcenter.org

www.dralegal.orgwww.dralegal.org/

Resolve to be Ready in 2011

Did you make a New Year’s resolution to help you and your family be more prepared for emergencies? The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Ready Campaign is offering a new toolkit that will make your resolution easy to keep. Users can access the tools and resources needed to take three important steps toward emergency preparedness: getting a kit, making a plan and being informed. Download the Resolve to Be Ready Toolkit, which provides information about including people with disabilities in planning for emergencies. You can also create an online personal emergency plan that you can download and print.

An important reminder – remember to be prepared and make a plan for the harsh conditions winter months can bring in many parts of the nation. For more information about preparing for emergencies, visit the Emergency Preparedness section of Disability.gov.

CDC Public Health Matters Blog

Emergency Preparedness
CDC Public Health Matters Blog
http://blogs.cdc.gov/publichealthmatters/

The CDC Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response (OPHPR) would like to welcome the Public Health Matters Blog to the Emergency Preparedness and Response website.   The Public Health Matters Blog is hosted by the Director of OPHPR, Dr. Ali Khan, who along with other invited authors share their perspectives and personal experiences working on the front lines of emerging infectious diseases and public health emergencies.

Emergency Management & People with Disabilities Resource from WVU's Center for Excellence in Disabilities

http://wvats.cedwvu.org/emergencybrochure.php

Emergency Management & People with Disabilities Resource from WVU's Center for Excellence in Disabilities

http://wvats.cedwvu.org

 

WVU's Center for Excellence in Disabilities has produced an informational resource on Emergency Management & People with Disabilities. This online and PDF resource includes information on community emergency planning, developing communications, evacuation plans, disability needs in the recovery phase, personal emergency planning, and disability etiquette. State and national resources and links are included

University of Kansas Launches New Interactive Disability Preparedness Website

University of Kansas Launches New Interactive Disability Preparedness Website

http://www.disabilityprepared.ku.edu/

In the fields of health, safety, and disabilities the need to collect and disseminate best practices on addressing the disaster-related needs of people with disabilities is frequently discussed but rarely attempted due to difficulties in obtaining, presenting, and updating the information.  In hopes of addressing these challenges, the Research and Training Center on Independent Living at the University of Kansas has developed a new interactive website and corresponding social media sites.  The website and corresponding Facebook and Twitter pages were launched October 2010. The purposes are to highlight and seek out best practices and be a stimulus for addressing unmet needs and identifying possible solutions. To do this requires interaction and contributions from people in the three fields (health, safety, disability) through the website’s forum or social media features.  Our research team had previously studied the impacts of disasters on people with disabilities through two research grants. We are now translating this information into educational efforts, and leadership roles in local preparedness efforts.  These efforts include assisting in 1) creating a county-level information center with emphasis on vulnerable populations, including a call center to be activated during county-level disasters, 2) organizing a community coalition to foster preparedness through various projects designed to minimize the impact of disasters on vulnerable populations, and 3) creating online training through the TRAIN system and other resources on important topics such as seasonal flu and pandemic preparedness.  We have highlighted these practices on the home page of the new website. 

Emergency Preparedness for Employers Update: Stairwell Use During an Emergency

Emergency Preparedness for Employers Update: Stairwell Use During an Emergency
http://www.disability.gov/emergency_preparedness/emergency_management_planning/evacuation_&_accessible_transportation

This presentation describes what to consider when evacuating people with mobility and other disabilities using stairwells during an emergency. Evacuation chairs are not the only solution for evacuating employees with mobility impairments.  People have different needs during an emergency evacuation, and employees with disabilities should be consulted to determine what kind of evacuation device would work for them.

National Broadband Plan's Next Generation 9-1-1

FCC has announced that it plans to upgrade the capabilities of the 9-1-1 emergency system by allowing texting, video streaming and data sharing as part of the National Broadband Plan's Next Generation 9-1-1.  Many people, particularly those with disabilities, depend on texting as their primary means of communication. In some emergency situations -- especially in circumstances where a call could further jeopardize someone’s life and safety -- texting is the only way to reach out for help.
For more information visit this link:  http://www.disability.gov/technology/news_%26_events