MEDIA CONTACT
Ana Maria Rosato|[email protected]
Click here for legal documents related to this case.
WHO
Kosha S. Tucker, Staff Attorney, ACLU of Georgia
Zoe Brennan-Krohn, Staff Attorney, ACLU Disability Rights Program
Brittany Shrader, Staff Attorney, National Association of the Deaf Law and Advocacy Center
Stephanna F. Szotkowski, Associate at Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP
Margaret Girard, Associate at Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP
Margaret Girard, Associate at Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP
WHAT
Hearing in federal court seeking an injunction directing the Georgia Department of Community Supervision to immediately provide qualified American Sign Language interpreters, auxiliary aids and services, and reasonable modifications to deaf and hard of hearing individuals on probation or parole.
WHERE
United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
Courtroom 1705
75 Ted Turner Drive, SW
Atlanta, GA 30303-3309
WHEN
Thursday, September 12, 2019, 9:30am
Witness testimony for the Plaintiffs to begin around 10:30am and continue until the close of court.
WHY
The Georgia Department of Community Supervision has repeatedly and consistently violated the rights of deaf people on probation and parole, simply because they are deaf. The department’s refusal to provide communication access — as federal law specifically requires — leaves deaf people unable to understand the complex rules and requirements of their probation or parole, putting them at constant risk of incarceration.
QUOTE
“Deaf and hard of hearing people released from prison on probation or parole deserve access to the same resources and opportunities. Successfully reentering society begins with effective communication with their probation or parole officers,” said Kosha Tucker, staff attorney with the ACLU of Georgia. “Failure to provide equal communication access violates the Americans with Disabilities Act and makes it more likely that deaf and hard of hearing people will return to prison unnecessarily.”
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