Saturday, April 28, 2012, 2:56 pm News Flash Archive

Last Tuesday, Darla Jones filed two lawsuits in federal court charging Leflore County and the local Pizza Hut with violations of the American with Disabilities Act.

Under the terms of the ADA, public establishments must make changes to accommodate disabled persons so that they can take full advantage of the facilities. The two suits allege that Ms. Jones is wheel-chair bound and, while visiting the locations, was unable to access them due to their lack of compliance with ADA requirements. She is represented by David Calder from Oxford and Edward Zwilling from Birmingham.

In the suit against the Pizza Hut, she alleges that, in addition to inadequate handicapped parking, the service counter is too high, the toilet room doors are too narrow for wheelchair passage, etc.

In the suit against Leflore County, she makes similar allegations concerning the Leflore County Civic Center regarding parking and bathroom facilities. She also claims that there is no "accessible seating" in the arena area.

Interestingly, she also brings claims against the Greenwood-Leflore Chamber of Commerce building, which is not owned by Leflore County, and she lists a host of problems there involving parking, the restrooms, the drinking fountain, etc.

The two complaints may be seen here:
Darla Jones v. Leflore County
Darla Jones v. Pizza Hut

Ms. Jones is seeking court orders to force the defendants to comply with the ADA, and to award her attorney fees and court costs.

John Pittman Hey
The Taxpayers Channel

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