[nagdu] Police lacking education & tact

[lindagwizdak at peoplepc.com]

Hi Bunny,
That was some story about the idiot police chief. Good job! However, I will 
say that it is a mistake to not have your dog's tags on him AT ALL TIMES. 
There usually is a law that states this - at least everywhere I've lived. 
Many places don't issue Rabies tags anymore but the license alone is proof 
of the Rabies because you haver to give the dog licensing agency a copy of a 
Rabies Certificate that you get from the vet.  This give the name, type, 
serial number, and maker of the particular vaccine you dog received.  You 
could have gotten cited for that violation - guess the chief didn't think of 
that!

Yesterday, I went to Animal Control to get the paper copy of the pooper 
scooper law.  I took this to the police station that is near the Humane 
Society and Animal Control.  I was greeted by a female police officer and I 
told her what happened and I showed her the copy of the law and the 
citation.  She thought it was stupid that I got cited.  She did tell me that 
the cops get a "cheat sheet" on the laws they need to have.  There was 
nothing about blind people being exempt in the law the cops carry with them. 
I told her that it might help them if they put "Blind Guide Dog Users 
Exempt" in their copy.  Anyway, she took my citation and copy of the law, 
made a copy.  She called a supervisor on the phone and got the seargent that 
I talked to on Saturday.  She told him who she was and read him the law.  He 
asked her to send him the citation and the copy of the law which she did. 
She then told me that they would void the citation as it hadn't been sent up 
to the court yet.  So, we're all set.

Even though the citation has been voided, I still think the police need to 
be educated.  My old boyfriend suggested that I write to the Police Chief 
about what happened and ask him if our CCB chapter can come in to educate 
the police on how to deal with blind people.  So, when the CCB chapter meets 
in a couple of weeks, I'll go and tell them about this and see if they'd 
like to do this project.  I'll keep everyone informed.  I will also talk to 
another blind cane user who had a run in with the cops when a bike rider ran 
over his white cane.  The cop asked him to identify the bike rider!  The guy 
is totally blind!  These cops not only don't know jack about blindness, they 
don't have any common sense either!

I know that several people oppose the idea of blind people being exempt from 
the law but I see it as a "safety net" for when we cannot find a trash can. 
One of my friends even told me that she took the bag of poop on the bus with 
her if she couldn't find a trash!  YUCK!!  All the guide dog users I know 
here do observe the law by picking up and throwing it away in the trash - 
more than alot of sighted folks.  I think the bigger picture here is the 
lack of knowledge of blind people and how to deal with us in a respectful 
manner.  This is now my focus.

Cheers,

Linda and Landon


----- 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 7:24 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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