[nagdu] Man's dog in a McDonald's results in Taser use

Sat May 30 12:24:08 UTC 2009

    Having had several incidents of denial of access necessitating calling 
law enforcement, I completely understand why the officers asked him to step 
outside to discuss the situation. His refusal to do so seems to indicate 
that he was seeking confrontation!

Fraternally,
marion


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Linda Gwizdak" <linda.gwizdak at cox.net>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Friday, May 29, 2009 2:08 PM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Man's dog in a McDonald's results in Taser use


> Sounds like this man was in trouble for being an ass - the manager allowed 
> him to order food and eat there. Then, I would imagine, most people leave 
> a restaurant after they finished their meal (grin!).
>
> I wonder if this man's problems with businesses is that he is obnoxious 
> rather than the fact he has a service dog.
>
> Linda and Landon
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: <craig.borne at dot.gov>
> To: <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Friday, May 29, 2009 10:24 AM
> Subject: [nagdu] Man's dog in a McDonald's results in Taser use
>
>
>> Man's dog in a McDonald's results in Taser use
>>
>>
>>
>> By SANDY CULLEN
>>
>> 608-252-6137
>>
>> May 27, 2009
>>
>>
>>
>> Madison police used pepper spray and a Taser on a Madison man who
>> refused to leave a McDonald's restaurant Tuesday night after a manager
>> questioned the
>>
>> man's identification of his dog as a service animal.
>>
>>
>>
>> Police spokesman Joel DeSpain said Stephen M. Bottila, 37, wanted to
>> file a complaint with police against the manager of the McDonald's at
>> 2402 S. Park
>>
>> St. because he felt his rights were being violated.
>>
>>
>>
>> DeSpain said the manager allowed Bottila to eat his food in the
>> restaurant with the sleeping dog after Bottila told him it was a service
>> animal, but then
>>
>> asked Bottila to leave.
>>
>>
>>
>> The manager called police around 8 p.m. and said he wanted to make sure
>> the dog was a service animal and that he wanted Bottila removed from the
>> restaurant,
>>
>> DeSpain said.
>>
>>
>>
>> DeSpain said officers attempted to get Bottila to leave and discuss his
>> complaint with them outside the restaurant, but Bottila refused, then
>> fought with
>>
>> three officers who tried to physically remove him.
>>
>>
>>
>> Bottila was being held Wednesday in Dane County Jail on tentative
>> charges of trespassing, resisting police and disorderly conduct. His dog
>> was taken to
>>
>> the Dane County Humane Society.
>>
>>
>>
>> Bottila has told the State Journal he has a seizure disorder for which
>> his dog provides assistance, and he has previously had problems with
>> employees of
>>
>> other businesses in the city and town of Madison recognizing his dog as
>> a service animal, prompting training for officers in the town of Madison
>> on the
>>
>> Americans with Disabilities Act.
>>
>>
>>
>> Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, representatives of a business
>> may ask if an animal is a service animal or what tasks the animal has
>> been trained
>>
>> to perform, but they cannot require special identification cards for the
>> animal, or ask about a person's disability.
>>
>>
>>
>> Cynthia Wick of the city's Department of Civil Rights said Bottila filed
>> a public accommodation complaint against Einstein Brothers Bagels in
>> September
>>
>> 2007 for refusing access to a service animal. An investigator found
>> probable cause to believe that discrimination on the basis of disability
>> occurred,
>>
>> but a hearing on the matter never took place, Wick said. Additional
>> information on the case was not immediately available.
>>
>>
>>
>> Madison Police Capt. Carl Gloede on Thursday denied a State Journal
>> request for police reports of Tuesday's incident, saying it remained an
>> active investigation
>>
>> requiring follow-up by district command staff, who review all arrests.
>>
>>
>>
>> Return to story
>>
>>
>>
>> madison.com
>>
>> is operated by Capital Newspapers, publishers of the Wisconsin State
>> Journal, The Capital Times, Agri-View and Apartment Showcase. All
>> contents Copyright
>>
>> (c)2009, Capital Newspapers. All rights reserved.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Craig Borne, Esq.
>>
>> Manager, External Civil Rights Compliance Program
>>
>>
>>
>> National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
>>
>> Office of Civil Rights
>>
>> 1200 New Jersey Avenue, Southeast
>>
>> Room W43-321
>>
>> Washington, DC 20590
>>
>>
>>
>> Office : (202) 493-0627
>>
>> Fax: (202) 493-2990
>>
>> Email: craig.borne at dot.gov <mailto:craig.borne at dot.gov>
>>
>>
>>
>> The information contained in this communication (including any
>> attachments) may be confidential and legally privileged. This email may
>> not serve as a contractual agreement unless explicit written agreement
>> for this purpose has been made. If you are not the intended recipient,
>> you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution, or copying
>> of this communication or any of its contents is strictly prohibited. If
>> you have received this communication in error, please re-send this
>> communication to the sender indicating that it was received in error and
>> delete the original message and any copy of it from your computer
>> system.
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> nagdu mailing list
>> nagdu at nfbnet.org
>> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
>> nagdu:
>> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/linda.gwizdak%40cox.net
>>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> nagdu mailing list
> nagdu at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
> nagdu:
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/swampfox1833%40verizon.net