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Wiley Secures Victory for Disability Rights Maryland in Pro Bono Lawsuit Against Prince George’s County Public Schools

Washington, DC – Wiley Rein LLP secured an important victory on behalf of Disability Rights Maryland (DRM) in a lawsuit against Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS), stemming from allegations that the school system disproportionately subjected students with disabilities to inappropriate and exclusionary forms of discipline.

In a March 24 decision granting DRM’s motion for summary judgment, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland ordered PGCPS to provide DRM with contact information for the parents or guardians of students who are eligible for special education in the school district, and who have received a suspension of more than three days or were expelled since January 2019.

Wiley Pro Bono Partner Theodore A. Howard represents Disability Rights Maryland in this case in collaboration with Luciene Parsley and Megan Berger of DRM’s legal staff. DRM is a nonprofit organization designated as the State of Maryland’s Protection & Advocacy agency. DRM is “federally mandated to advance the civil rights of people with disabilities,” and provides free legal services to individuals in Maryland with all types of disabilities who live in facilities or the wider community, or who are homeless.

DRM’s unsuccessful requests for parent or guardian contact information came after it received over 85 complaints against PGCPS related to exclusionary discipline and educational neglect of students with disabilities. As noted in the court’s ruling, DRM investigated many of the complaints and concluded that “PGCPS frequently violated the educational rights of students with disabilities.” 

When PGCPS refused to voluntarily provide the contact information DRM sought, Wiley filed an action for declaratory and injunctive relief on DRM’s behalf in November 2021 under the applicable federal protection and advocacy statutes and regulations.

The court agreed with Wiley’s argument that DRM is entitled to production by the school system of the information it has requested as a matter of law, and firmly rejected the various arguments interposed by the school system to prevent that outcome.

Originally posted March 28, 2023 by Wiley Rein LLP

 

About Wiley Rein LLP

Founded in 1983, Wiley is a dominant presence in the nation’s capital. With more than 240 attorneys and advisors, the firm has earned international prominence by representing clients in complex, high-stakes regulatory, litigation, and transactional matters. Many of Wiley’s lawyers and public policy advisors have held high-level positions in the White House and federal agencies and on Capitol Hill. The firm represents a wide range of clients – from Fortune 500 corporations to trade associations to individuals – in virtually all industries. Wiley provides significant pro bono legal services and charitable contributions to the local community every year.

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PRESS RELEASE: Guardians Sue Maryland Seeking Limits on and Oversight of the Use of Powerful Psychotropic Medications for Children in Foster Care

January 17, 2023

MEDIA CONTACT

Megan Berger, Disability Rights Maryland, megan.berger@disabilityrightsmd.org
Meredith Curtis Goode, ACLU of Maryland, curtis@aclu-md.org
Camilla Jenkins, Children’s Rights, cjenkins@childrensrights.org


BALTIMORE, MD – Today, Disability Rights Maryland, the ACLU of Maryland, Children’s Rights, and Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP filed a lawsuit against the Maryland Department of Human Services (DHS) and Social Services Administration (SSA) on behalf of minor children in the State’s foster care system who are given one or more psychotropic medications. The lawsuit covers all jurisdictions except Baltimore City, which is covered through separate ongoing litigation involving children in foster care.

The lawsuit claims that for over a decade Maryland’s DHS and SSA have failed to exercise adequate oversight of children in foster care who are given potentially dangerous psychotropic drugs.

As many as 34% of children in Maryland’s foster care system are given psychotropic drugs, and more than half of those children are prescribed multiple drugs at the same time. Nearly 75% of these children who are taking psychotropic drugs do not have a psychiatric diagnosis. Black children, disproportionately represented in Maryland’s foster care system, are at greater risk of being subjected to dangerous prescribing practices in many counties.

The complaint outlines dangerous failures on the part of SSA and DHS to serve as effective custodians for the children in their care, including failing to compile and maintain adequate medical and mental health records, failing to implement an adequate informed consent process, and failing to operate an adequate secondary review system to conduct second opinion evaluations when necessary.

Up to 80% of U.S. children who enter state foster care systems have significant mental health needs, including the effects of trauma caused by having been taken from their families and loved ones. The uncertainties and instabilities associated with life in foster care often add to that trauma, leading children to display complex behaviors that require the attention of mental health professionals. Frequently psychotropic medications are administered, which can be of help to children, but only when sufficient oversight mechanisms are in place.

Psychotropic medications are powerful drugs that directly affect the chemicals in the brain that help to regulate emotions and behavior. Children face a great risk of harmful side effects including seizures, suicidal thinking and behavior, weight gain, excessive fatigue and chronic diseases such as diabetes. The likelihood of adverse effects of medication increases with the number of medications, and these side effects can be lifelong, continuing even after the medication is stopped.

The risks of harm from psychotropic medications are increased for children in government systems because they do not have a consistent interested party to coordinate their treatment. The fact that multiple people are involved in their care can result in poor recordkeeping and miscommunication leading to children being prescribed too many drugs, at too high a dosage, at too young an age. Children pay the price, which is unacceptable.

Y.A., a sixteen-year-old Black child who has been in the custody of Maryland’s DHS for over two years, is one of the named plaintiffs in the case. He has repeatedly cycled between hospitalizations and temporary motel stays, and today remains separated from his mother and confined to a residential treatment facility. Y.A. overdosed twice on his medications while living in the motel. He has suffered severe side-effects, including extreme weight gain, difficulty controlling his hands and arms, difficulty walking, dizziness, fatigue, stomach aches, and head-aches, all of which are known symptoms of one or more of the multiple psychotropic medications he is taking. Neither Y.A. nor his mother has been given adequate information about his medications, and no adult with authority to consent to his medications regularly attends Y.A.’s psychiatric appointments with him. He believes that DHS “doesn’t pay attention” to him.

“Now is the time for our state to address these systemic deficiencies and provide proper care for the children they promised to protect. With a new administration in Annapolis, a critical window has opened for Maryland to address past failures and meet its responsibility to support children in state custody. The children of Maryland deserve nothing less,” said Megan Berger, assistant managing attorney at Disability Rights Maryland.

“The lack of comprehensive recordkeeping for all children is exacerbated by the state’s failure to enforce a clear and unambiguous informed consent policy. Medications are approved without benefit of a child’s health history, leading to potentially life-threatening complications,” said Samantha Bartosz, deputy director of litigation at Children’s Rights. “Biological parents are often not engaged, and may not even be aware that their child is taking psychotropic drugs. Youth, too, have no voice in consequential health decisions impacting them. Instead they are forced to take medications against their will.”

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About Disability Rights Maryland

Disability Rights Maryland, Inc. (DRM), a non-profit organization, is Maryland’s designated Protection & Advocacy Agency federally authorized to advance and protect the civil rights of individuals with disabilities, including children and youth with mental health, developmental, and other disabilities. DRM works with people with disabilities to achieve full participation in community life, self-determination, equality, freedom from abuse and neglect, and access to civil rights. For more information, please visit www.disabilityrightsmd.org.

About the ACLU of Maryland

Founded in 1931, the ACLU of Maryland exists to empower Marylanders to exercise their rights so that the law values and uplifts their humanity. Our vision is for Maryland’s people to be united in affirming and exercising their rights in order to address inequities and fulfill the country’s unrealized promise of justice and freedom for all. www.aclu-md.org

About Children’s Rights

Every day, children are harmed in America’s child welfare, juvenile justice, education, and healthcare systems. Through relentless strategic advocacy and legal action, we hold governments accountable for keeping kids safe and healthy. Children’s Rights, a national non-profit organization, has made a lasting impact for hundreds of thousands of vulnerable children. For more information, please visit www.childrensrights.org.

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Maryland Election Day November 8!

The upcoming general election for the State of Maryland is November 8, 2022!

Polling places will be open from 7am to 8pm and are required to provide reasonable accommodations to voters with disabilities. You can find DRM’s Voter Rights and Voting Action Plan on our website.

 

Election Protection Hotlines are open before and during election day:

ENGLISH 866-OUR-VOTE 866-687-8683

SPANISH/ENGLISH 888-VE-Y-VOTA 888-839-8682

ASIAN LANGUAGES/ENGLISH 888-API-VOTE 888-274-8683

ARABIC/ENGLISH 844-YALLA-US 844-925-5287

 

DRM wants to hear from you if your polling site was accessible, if election judges provided accommodations, if you had any problems with the voting machines, or anything else on your mind. Email your comments to Voting@DisabilityRightsMD.org or call us at 443-692-2492.

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Maryland’s Eviction Crisis is an Affordable Housing Crisis

Disability Rights Activists holding yellow signs that say Housing is a "Human Right" and a green sign that says, "Fair Housing is a Civil Right."
Disability Rights Activists holding yellow signs that say Housing is a “Human Right” and a green sign that says, “Fair Housing is a Civil Right.”

In Maryland, more than half of all people with disabilities had annual household incomes below $15,000 in 2016. While many people with disabilities receive monthly Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits, SSI payments alone are usually not enough to afford market-rate housing: in 2020, the average monthly rent of a one-bedroom apartment in Maryland was $1,223, while monthly SSI payments were just $783.

Maryland’s eviction crisis is an affordable housing crisis.

If you are experiencing routine eviction filings by your landlord and cannot pay rent timely because of when your benefits arrive, you may have the right to a reasonable accommodation for an extended grace period to pay your rent.

Read more from The Baltimore Banner, “Filing for evictions is cheap and easy in Maryland. Tenants suffer.”

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DRM Celebrates #ADA32

Red, white, and blue graphic that says, A D A 32. 1990 to 2022. Americans with Disabilities Act. Celebrate the ADA. July 26, 2022.
Today we celebrate the 32nd anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). On this historic day, DRM honors thousands of individuals and their families who refused to accept major barriers that prevented individuals with disabilities of all ages, races and backgrounds from participating in community life. Their determined efforts combined with the staunch, persistent support of legislators and numerous other allies made this landmark legislation possible.

Learn about the history of the disability rights movement from internationally renowned disability rights activist Judy Heumann.

Image Credit: ADA National Network (adata.org) 1-800-949-4232.

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