The U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled unanimously in favor of a Georgia inmate in the disability rights case United States v. Georgia.
Samuel R. Bagenstos, J.D., professor of law, argued the case on behalf of the inmate, Tony Goodman. The ruling paves the wave for Goodman to seek damages against the state of Georgia.
“What’s most important about this case is that the court made clear, really for the first time, that the ADA (Americans With Disabilities Act) is valid remedial Section 5 legislation in any case in which the state conduct that violates the ADA also violates the Constitution,” said Bagenstos, a leading authority in the field of disability law and the ADA.
“There is no requirement that the plaintiff show a history and pattern of past state constitutional violations in such cases. The fact that the conduct challenged by the plaintiff violated the Constitution is enough.”
The ruling cites among Goodman’s “more serious allegations” that he was “confined for 23 to 24 hours per day in a 12-by-3-foot cell, in which he could not turn his wheelchair around” and that “the lack of accessible facilities rendered him unable to use the toilet and shower without assistance, which was often denied.”