Random Lengths Article About Possible Violation of Americans with Disabilities Act

Link to my April 21, 2017 article in Random Lengths News about a lawsuit that charges the Los Angeles Unified School District is perhaps violating the Americans with Disabilities Act in its accommodation (or lack thereof) of students with special needs:

http://www.randomlengthsnews.com/2017/04/rights-special-ed-students-stake/

Here are the lead graphs:

Does LAUSD Policy Violate Rights of Special Ed Kids?

By Lyn Jensen, Carson Reporter

Rights of thousands of children with special needs in the Los Angeles Unified School District are at stake in a lawsuit that’s spent four years bouncing between United States District Court and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. LAUSD is the defendant in a class action suit filed in 2013 by several parents with special needs children.

At issue is whether the LAUSD is complying with a 1975 federal law and a consent decree issued in 1995.

“The LAUSD has routinely been violating the rights of the special needs children,” charges Eric Jacobson via e-mail. He’s an attorney representing the parents who, on behalf of their children, allege the LAUSD has engaged in a district-wide pattern of improper activities in violation of the 1975 federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, by forcing students with special needs into general education schools.

Often referred to as IDEA, the law says each student with special needs must be assessed as to the “least restrictive” placement on an individual basis. The parents argue that for their children, a special education center is the least restrictive environment.