A civil rights class action lawsuit has been announced on behalf of special needs students in New Orleans. The defendants listed are the Louisiana Department of Education (LDE), Louisiana School Superintendent Paul Pastorek, and the Louisiana Board of Elementary and secondary Education (LBESE).
The 60 page class action complaint claims that the defendants have engaged in “disability discrimination” because the Orleans Public Schools have failed to endure that Louisiana public schools offer the same variety of educational programs and services to disabled students as non-disabled children.
The purpose of the lawsuit is claimed to be an action to “vindicate the rights of all New Orleans students with disabilities filed pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004. There are 22 plaintiffs named in the lawsuit all of whom are disabled students and their parents who report to being affected by the lack of services for the disabled. The disabilities of these students range from minor disabilities such as ADHD and dyslexia, to more severe disabilities including autism and blindness.
The LDE is also accused of several different systemic violations including discrimination on the basis of disability, and failure to protect students’ procedural safeguards in the disciplinary process. The complaint lists several instances where students were denied admittance to public schools due to their disabilities.
Stanley Iola – Dallas litigation lawyers