Opinion ID: 1194191
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Equal protection and ADA violations.

Text: Plaintiffs in Pierce assert an equal protection claim under § 1983 based on the denial of equal treatment to disabled detainees, and they advance a separate claim for violations of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 42 U.S.C. § 12131 et seq. Plaintiffs maintain that the County has violated the ADA by failing to address numerous structural barriers, such as inaccessible bathroom facilities, [4] and failing to provide adequate access to various programs offered by the County's jails. One of the plaintiff inmates, Timothy Conn, claimed to have suffered physical injuries, as well as mental and emotional harms, because of the County's failure to accommodate his disability. Conn is wheelchair-bound and alleged that he suffered recurrent bladder infections because the County failed to provide him with an adequate supply of catheters. Conn also claimed to have developed bed sores that were exacerbated when he was forced to sit on a holding cell bench, and eventually required surgery. The district court dismissed Conn's claims on summary judgment prior to trial on the grounds that they were de minimis and thus not actionable pursuant to the PLRA. See 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(e).