[NFBV-Announce] Virginia Department of Corrections denies equal services to visually impaired people who are incarcerated

Tue Mar 28 09:51:39 UTC 2023

I apologize for missing the distribution of this important press release
earlier.

The full complaint is attached.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 15, 2023

Media contact: Alexandra Werner-Winslow, alexandra at acluva.org,
<mailto:alexandra at acluva.org>  (804) 659-9570

Virginia Department of Corrections denies equal services to visually
impaired people who are incarcerated

RICHMOND, Va. - Today the ACLU of Virginia, the disAbility Law Center of
Virginia, and the law firm of Brown, Goldstein, and Levy filed a complaint
in the Eastern District of Virginia against the Virginia Department of
Corrections (VADOC), individual VADOC officials, and the Virginia
Information Technologies Agency on behalf of the National Federation of the
Blind of Virginia and seven incarcerated blind men being denied equal access
to services and programs available to sighted incarcerated people.

Michael McCann, Kevin Muhammad Shabazz, Patrick Shaw and William Stravitz
are currently incarcerated at Deerfield Correctional Center; Nacarlo Antonio
Courtney, William Hajacos and Wilbert Rogers are currently incarcerated at
Greensville Correctional Center. 

"The Americans with Disabilities Act requires correctional facilities like
Deerfield and Greensville to provide the people in their care with equal
access to jobs, programs, housing, medical services, and communication,"
said ACLU-VA Senior Staff Attorney Vishal Agraharkar. "The failure of both
facilities to provide equal access and services to all people in its care is
not just unlawful: it's unconscionable."

The complaint alleges that VADOC has relied on other incarcerated people to
act as so-called "caregivers" for blind prisoners. To fill out such critical
materials as requests for medical visits or grievance forms, blind prisoners
must ask their "caregivers" to do it for them, as well as to read out loud
to them everything from prison policies to private correspondence.

"Relying on other incarcerated people puts blind people in VADOC facilities
at the mercy of sighted prisoners and forces them to give their peers access
to their private information," said Eve Hill, partner at Brown, Goldstein,
and Levy. "Technology is readily available that VADOC could - and must - use
to provide private and independent access to materials for blind people in
VDOC custody.'"

Nor does VADOC guarantee blind people access to their "caregivers." Mr.
Rogers and Mr. Shaw, for example, were separated from their "caregivers" by
prison transfers and the pandemic, forcing them to pay other incarcerated
people to help them. Mr. McCann's "caregiver" has a bunk on the opposite
side of their housing unit, so every time he needs help, Mr. McCann must try
to navigate object-strewn aisles. Accidentally bumping into corrections
officers and other incarcerated people along the way has led to physical
altercations that have injured Mr. McCann - although Deerfield officials
refused to review surveillance video of one such assault when, due to his
visual impairment, Mr. McCann could not identify his assailant.

The ADA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act prohibit covered entities
like correctional facilities from excluding people with disabilities from
services, activities, or programs. Yet Mr. Shaw was turned away from class
when he attempted to sign up for educational programming, and the supervisor
of Mr. Shabazz's pod still refuses to consider his applications for a
higher-paid work assignment on the grounds that his blindness poses a
"safety risk." Following his vision loss, VADOC removed Mr. Courtney from
his work assignment entirely. 

Mr. Hajacos, for his part, was given an ultimatum: he could move to a
housing unit where he could keep his job, but lose his accommodations, or he
could remain in his housing unit with his accommodations, where he would
lose his job.

Perhaps most galling, VADOC has failed to provide medically necessary
treatment for the very same visual impairments that it has used as a basis
to deny blind incarcerated people equal access to jobs, services and
programs. 

Mr. Courtney, for example, has struggled since 2016 to receive regular
appointments and medical treatment for the keratoconus that he was diagnosed
with while in VADOC custody. Without it, his eyesight has deteriorated. Mr.
Stravitz, too, was diagnosed with cataracts while in VADOC custody, and
since he requires surgery, VADOC refuses to provide him with corrective
eyewear. Ten months later, VADOC still had not scheduled - much less
performed - the necessary surgery. 

 "It's unacceptable that the Department of Corrections is refusing to
provide critical medical services to those in their custody who have vision
impairments," said disAbility Law Center of Virginia Executive Director
Colleen Miller. "The Department violates the law by failing to provide equal
access and services to all people in its care."

By failing to provide blind people who are incarcerated in its custody with
equal access to services and programs that it makes available to sighted
people, VADOC is violating the ADA, Section 504, the Virginians with
Disabilities Act, and the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

"These seven individuals and other blind prisoners in the Commonwealth of
Virginia are subjected to discrimination that has caused and is causing them
real harm, including inability to participate in rehabilitation and serious
threats to their personal safety," said National Federation of the Blind
President Mark Riccobono. "This discriminatory and inhumane treatment must
stop, and we are determined that it will."

The complaint calls on the court to order VADOC to cease violating the
rights of blind incarcerated people in its custody, as well as to award
monetary damages to the seven men named as plaintiffs.

###

About the ACLU of Virginia The ACLU of Virginia promotes civil liberties and
civil rights for everyone in the Commonwealth through public education,
litigation, and advocacy with the goal of securing freedom and equality for
all. More information at  <http://www.acluva.org> www.acluva.org.

About Brown, Goldstein & Levy  Brown Goldstein & Levy provides the highest
quality legal services to a broad range of clients, without sacrificing our
deep sense of community and social responsibility. By elevating our clients'
voices and fighting for their rights, we seek to bring about a more just
world - sometimes one dispute at a time, sometimes through systemic change.
More information at  <http://www.browngold.com> www.browngold.com. 

About disAbility Law Center of Virginia The disAbility Law Center of
Virginia is the federally authorized protection and advocacy organization
for Virginians with disabilities. More information at
<https://www.dlcv.org/> www.dlcv.org.

About the National Federation of the Blind of Virginia NFBV is a nonprofit
made up of blind people of all ages, their families and friends. NFBV
members and leaders provide advocacy and support to blind and visually
impaired Virginians across the commonwealth and work together to promote
full participation and integration of blind people in all areas of life, and
we serve as an advocate for change when equal access and treatment of the
blind is denied. More information at  <https://www.nfbv.org> www.nfbv.org. 

Basic bios on each plaintiff:

*	Nacarlo Antonio Courtney is 31 years old and became blind in prison.
He was appointed to be the motivational speaker in his housing unit in 2022.
He calls his wife and two children every weekend, who he is looking forward
to seeing when he is released in 2023. He hopes to start studying to become
a civil rights attorney.
*	William Hajacos is 48 years old and is both blind and deaf. He loves
soccer and hopes to take a graphic design course at Greensville when granted
the appropriate accommodations.
*	Michael McCann is 43 years old and has been blind since he was five
years old. He, his mother, sister, brother, and sister-in-law are
longstanding members of the National Federation of the Blind. Mr. McCann
hopes to take a horticultural course at Deerfield when he is granted the
appropriate accommodations.
*	Wilbert Rogers is 65 years old. Becoming partially blind in the late
1990s, he has been fully blind for the last 15 years. He learned Braille
because another incarcerated blind person taught him, and recited positive
quotes to others in his housing unit each morning when he served as his
pod's mentor. His sisters, Brenda and Rita Rogers, are his caretakers at
home and support during incarceration.
*	Kevin Muhammad Shabazz is 35 years old and has been blind since age
17. Mr. Shabazz likes being around people and reading nonfiction when he is
able to use assistive technology. He is a father to two daughters who he
keeps in touch with as often as he can.
*	Patrick Shaw is 60 years old and has been in VADOC custody for
nearly 35 years. He experienced deteriorating vision for ten years before
going completely blind in 2009. He is an honorably discharged army veteran
who loves PBS, reading his Bible, calling his mother and sister, and - with
the help of his caretaker - listening to rock music on his JP6 tablet,
especially Radiohead.
*	William Stravitz is 57 years old and has rapidly been losing his
vision over the last two years. He graduated from the University of Richmond
in 1987 with his bachelor's degree. He has spent several years as a tutor in
VADOC custody helping other incarcerated people earn their GEDs, and now
works in the prison library.

The full legal complaint document that was filed is attached.

Tracy Soforenko

President, National Federation of the Blind of Virginia

202 285-4595

 <mailto:Tracy.soforenko at gmail.com> Tracy.soforenko at gmail.com

 <http://www.nfb.org> www.nfb.org

 <http://www.nfbv.org> www.nfbv.org

National Federation of the Blind. Live the Life You Want

The National Federation of the Blind is a community of members and friends
who believe in the hopes and dreams of the nation's blind. Every day we work
together to help blind people live the lives they want.

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