Disabled Prisoner May Sue State for Abuses

In a case that went all the way to the US Supreme Court, which ruled unanimously in favor, a disabled prisoner can sue a state for monetary damages under the Americans with Disability Act for any action that violated his constitutional rights.

Tony Goodman, a prisoner in Georgia being held on a variety of charges including drug sales, gun possession and physical abuse of his girlfriend, is a paraplegic and is confined to a wheelchair.  The details of his complaint included a series of serious abuses that, if they occurred, were a gross violation of Goodman’s rights as an American, even while incarcerated.

According to Goodman, he was left alone in a cell that was too narrow to move his wheelchair and broke his toe and crushed his knee when he tried to jump onto the toilet in his cell.  Goodman was also taken for a ride in the back of a van without any seatbelts or restraints used to hold his wheelchair steady and he toppled over, losing consciousness several times during the ride.  Goodman was also refused any aid after he went to the bathroom on himself and on the floor of his cell and was left for days in his own filth.

After several attempts to sue for his abuse, Goodman was granted a hearing before the US Supreme Court, which said he may sue for damages done to him that violate his right to the same things every person with a disability has in American society.

Justice Anton Scalia ruled that Congress might act in favor of the suit against the states for any constitutional violations.  The case now goes back to the lower courts where several other issues will now be decided on, including whether other violations were committed.