[nagdu] Police lacking education & tact

Mon Jan 19 14:53:14 UTC 2009

Wouldn't kicking a dog be considered animal cruelty? 
Wonder why that alone wouldn't have gotten the officer in trouble? 

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Chasity Jackson
Sent: Friday, January 16, 2009 12:07 PM
To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Police lacking education & tact

In 2004, on graduation day when I graduated college, a couple of
friends, my boyfriend and I went to go celebrate my graduation at a
chinese restaurant. 
It had once been owned by people who knew my family very well, so I was
surprised to see they no longer owned it. We went to sit at a table, and
this lady came over and was screaming, "No dog, no dog!" She went as far
as to start kicking my dog under the table. I called the police. This
cocky officer came over and told me to leave or he would make me leave.
He said, "These people don't want your dog at the buffet and they have
the right to ask you not to do that." I had a pocket sized law book that
Guiding Eyes distributes that has the laws for each individual state. I
already had it open to the Missouri page. I said, "Can you please look
at this, it will show you the law." He said, "I'm a cop, I don't have to
look at anything. 
Now leave or I'll make you leave." So we left and went to another place.

Then, I called the sherriff. The sherriff didn't believe me either, but
I finally sent him a copy of the law, and all he did was apologize and
say he'd educate his officers, and he said, "We don't normally deal with
this, so you can't expect us to know service dog laws." That's BS,
because I had that law book open to the Missouri page, it's not like I
ever asked them to take my word for it.

Chasity
Check out the tribute page I created for my guide dog Vanda at:
www.myspace.com/vandaandchasity
Listen to my radio show every Thursday from 4-7pm on the Q Online:
www.theqonline.net
Visit my MySpace page and add me at
www.myspace.com/chasityandvanda
Listen to my podcast at:
http://www.gcast.com/u/Chasityvanda/main.xml
Or by phone at: (559) 553-4627
----- Original Message -----
From: "Bunny Davidson" <bunnydavidson at live.com>
To: "National Association of Guide Dog Users" <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Friday, January 16, 2009 9:24 AM
Subject: [nagdu] Police lacking education & tact

Hi All,

A couple months ago i had an experience in where i went to eat at a
little 
coffee shop (breakfast)
In a small rural Mass. town... as i entered the restarant (a seat your
self 
place) I was stoped at the door
by an old lady waitress who told me the board of heatlh forbid dogs in 
restarants.

I kindly informed here service dogs to the disabled are exempt, and if
she 
wanted to learn the laws she could
go to doj/ada website - she said that maybe so but our health inspecter
will 
shut us down if you bring your dog in here.

so i gave her a biz card size paper i had printed out the ada basics
with 
the 800# for ada at doj, and the web address on back.
she said anyone could type this up... (infering I made it all up!)

I said excuse me mam, but its a civil rights violation to forbid a
disabled 
person from entering stores, restarants or any public place.
i am here to eat breakfast, please excuse us.  i walked around her and
sat 
at a table along the back wall.

eventually another waitress came over to clear a nearby table, i told
her I 
would like breakfast please.  she begrudgingly took my order.
when my coffee and eggs arrived so did a cop, who sat accross my table 
without asking permission and proceeded to show his complete ignorance
of
the ADA, I tried to explain to him what the law allowed and that the
info 
was on the goverment website, he told me the town had health regulations

forbidding
dogs in placees where food was served... I asked for the name of the
police 
chief, he said chief walker, I asked for his name, he said chief
walker!!! 
LOL (not funny at the time)
So then chief walker proceeded to ask me for certification proof of my 
service dog, I expleained there is no such requirement nor federal
standard 
to certify a SD...
I mentioned how there are many folks with various disabilities who all
have 
dogs taught specificly to assit their unique set of needs, so a general
test 
wouldnt really make sense.
I explained the law did mention that as long as the dog doesnt attack 
anyone, bark disturbingly (like in a movie et) or bite someone whe dogs
were 
permitted.

So he then told me i needed to show him proof my dog was licensed.  (i
said 
she was, but i didnt have her in the collar it was attatched to -she was
in 
harness) he asked me for my ID.
I thought that was pretty SS (what is this marshall law?).  I did show
my 
DL... then he asked for proof of rabies (you get the picture)... and of 
course the rabies tag was on the reg. collar at home with license.
He seemed like he was going to give me some kind of ticket or charge me
with 
something , I said- look, if you are so concerend of my dogs
liscence/rabies 
et, please call our town clerk's office and ask her
to verify my dog is legally licensed and vacinated?  I wrote down her
name 
and handed it to him.  I also took out another of those little papers
with 
the ADA # & URL on it and encouraged him to lookinto the laws.
He said that mass. laws would trump the ada law and he wasnt interested.
I 
then told him he could be putting himself and the entire police dept and

town offices in jeapardy of  civil rights violation chargess and fines
for 
not abiding by the civil rights provisions of the fed law, I also told
him 
the ADA law specifies that in the case of state or local law/vs the FED
ADA 
granting different access or allowances that the Laws giving the
disabled 
the most benifit were the ones to govern a situation.  He insisted that
his 
state laws were soveregn... that i was misinformed!  I asked if  he had
ever 
read the americans with disabilities act, he said no. (then how can he
claim 
he knows what is the law!)

I got his fax number and email and told him i would like to forward him
copy 
of the ada laws regarding service animals in places of buisness et...

---All this INTERROGATION style INFRINGEMENT ON MY RIGHT TO PEACEFULLY
EAT 
MY MEAL---gave me lumps in my stomach and at times i felt like i would
throw 
up or cry, but i didnt let on and tried to be strong.  I didnt want to
let 
him win.  I was not going to be pushed out of the place without doing
what i 
came to do, peacefully and solitarily eat my eggs!

finally the Police chief got up and went to sit at the counter.  the old
bag 
waitress came right over (im sure to get the scoop)  I paid and left.

I went home and sent the guy the laws, he actually wrote back and said
thank 
you.  I asked if he could please make copies to give to the rest off his

dept.  he said ok.

he never apologised for the harrasment, but then thinking he might would
be 
like believing santa clause was real ...

--------------------OKay, so why write all this ?
Because i think that no matter where we go with our dogs,
there is always a chance that we will meet up with someone who is
clueless 
and in legal authority .

I know education of the laws that protect us is Primary but that
The townships, counties and state police are often in the dark about our

rights.
-Most disabled know the laws way better than the shop owners or
police...

It is wrong that ADA education is not provided to law enforcement ,
but their ignorance need not rob us of our dignity or mobility-
provided we stay calm and speak our wisdom respectfully ,
I think, if we can, make the initial confruntation into an oportunity to

offer them copies of the ADA , FHA or whatever applies...
We can get their contact info and send the laws to them, ask them to
read 
and distribute to their offices/depts...
I also think a letter to the editor of any local paper informing of the 
incident and the actions we took to provide education,
explaining the need for the public and the authorities to learn the
rights 
of the disabled, and to demystify the way we disabled live our lives...
Let them know we are just regular folks who want and pursue the same
things 
in our lives as everyone else, and that no one has the right to try to
stop 
our pursuits.

I also think that in Linda's case her follow up was quite appropriate,
and 
that going further maybe a good idea.

Bunny

Bunny
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