[nagdu] Enforcement

[Julie J.]

I'm sorry that you've had such a difficult time.

Can you please describe what happened at the restaurant? Specifically were 
you asked to leave?  Did you have your guide dog with you?  Were others in 
your party also asked to leave?  Were you invited back without your guide 
dog? Did you inform the business that you are blind/disabled and the dog is 
your guide/service dog?  Was this information also given to the police?  I'm 
going to assume that you told them, but it is very important to make 
absolutely sure that you gave the business/police that information.

What state are you in?  There may be state laws that might be more helpful 
than the ADA.

Hopefully we'll be able to get something more productive figured out.

Hang in there,
Julie
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ron Davidson" <fuzzy_1 at cox.net>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Wednesday, January 21, 2009 3:42 PM
Subject: [nagdu] Enforcement


>I found out recently that the ADA laws are not the easiest to get enforced. 
>I was denied access to a local restraint with my guide dog and as I was 
>taught in school did not force my way in.  I explained the law to the 
>management and they still refused. They changed their mind after I asked 
>them to call the police to have me removed and they refused to do this so I 
>called the police and filed a complaint or report. When I got home I filled 
>out a complaint form with the DOJ and also with the state attorney generals 
>office  because I received a email from DOJ saying to do so. The state 
>attorneys generals office emailed me and told me they couldn't enforce the 
>federal law and to contact my local City ADA compliance office they sent me 
>to the district attorneys office and they sent me to the Human Rights 
>Commission. Then I received a letter from a law office that worked as 
>mediators and we set up and met with the restraint owners and worked out a 
>settlement. The restraint then broke the contract of settlement with me and 
>I recontacted the mediators office and they said there was nothing more 
>they could do. I contacted the DOJ and they said the only thing I could do 
>was privately sue the restraint and the state has limitations on the amount 
>I could receive and may not be enough to cover my legal fees. Is this 
>normally how this works a big run around just to be dumped on. I think if 
>we give local agencies the power to enforce the ada laws that would help 
>maybe I am wrong. By the way the terms of the contract was that I and 
>someone from the local low vision center would train all their employees on 
>how to deal with as far as sight guiding and waiting on us and other things 
>helpful for them to know just some educating of the public and the 
>management thought that was a great idea.  But he never had a intensions of 
>sticking to the terms of the contract.
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