Civilization In A Society Can Be Judged By Seeing Its Prisoners. Fyodor Dostoevsky.

After the realignment of California prisons, the State of California contended it was absolved of previous requirements for violations of the rights of disabled inmates. The federal district court rejected the argument and ordered renewal of negotiations. Obviously frustrated with the present situation, the first paragraph of the Ninth Circuit’s opinion reads: “Since 1994, disabled state prisoners and parolees have been engaged in a seemingly never-ending struggle with California state officials over whether defendants must provide disability accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) and the Rehabilitation Act. These accommodations include basic necessities of life for disabled prisoners and parolees, such as wheelchairs, sign language interpreters, accessible beds and toilets, and tapping canes for the blind. Notwithstanding a series of careful district court orders dating back to 1996 and an opinion by this Court affirming the issuance of a permanent injunction, defendants have resisted complying with their federal obligations at every turn. These appeals provide no exception. Defendants contend that a narrow portion of the class of disabled state prisoners and parolees is no longer eligible to benefit from the district court’s remedial orders due to a change in California Penal Code section 3056. We reject that contention and affirm the district court’s latest enforcement orders.” The Ninth Circuit affirmed the remedial order of the district court. (Armstrong v. Brown (Ninth Cir.; October 4, 2013) 732 F.3d 955.)