Deaf Woman Sues NYPD For Wrongly Arrested

VIDEO [CC] - Exclusive Interviews: Deaf woman arrested by NYPD settles case against city for $750,000.



NEW YORK CITY - A Deaf woman who said she was wrongly arrested by cops who ignored her disability settled her case for $750,000 Tuesday, a figure her attorneys say is the largest of its kind.



Diana Williams charged in her suit filed in Manhattan Federal Court that the New York City Police Department officers who slapped her in cuffs ignored police guidelines requiring them to request a sign language interpreter when interacting with Deaf people.



“Deaf individuals have rights, and they do not have to tolerate discrimination and injustices of any kind,” her attorneys Andrew Rozynski and Eric Baum said in a statement.



“Ms. Williams hopes that the settlement will send a message to all law enforcement agencies across the country that they should adopt proper policies and procedures to ensure full communication access for Deaf individuals.”

Two New Yorkers who can't hear or speak and communicate only by sign language claim they were wrongly arrested by NYPD officers in two separate incidents.



Williams’ ordeal began Sept. 11, 2011, when she called 911 for assistance evicting a difficult tenant from her Staten Island home.



Most of the people in the house were Deaf, but cops allegedly ignored training requiring them to request an interpreter.



Without being able to explain to Williams what was happening, Officer Christian Romano arrested her and the tenant for allegedly getting in a fight, and for the next 24 hours police ignored her attempts to communicate, the suit said.



Williams was so panicked she even wrote the letters “HOSP” on the window of a police cruiser in an effort to tell them she needed to go to the hospital, the suit says.



Romano checked the “No” box on the arrest report asking if an interpreter was needed, according to documents. He later checked “No” on different paperwork asking if Williams had a disability.



Williams’ attorneys, who run the Eisenberg and Baum Law Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing, said they believe their client has received the largest payout ever to an individual alleging Deaf discrimination by a public agency. A Deaf advocate at the firm, Sheryl Eisenberg-Michalowski, also worked on the case.



“Settling was in the best interest of the city,” a Law Department spokesman said. Source by New York Daily News

Starbucks Sued For Discrimination Deaf Employee

Deaf News: Starbucks sued for allegedly discriminating against Deaf staff.

PHOENIX, AZ - The American Genius: Having a product that is in demand is vital, but maintaining quality help is the very bedrock of successful companies. A business, even the most reputable one, cannot make an impact without respectable, pleasant and reliable employees.



Regulars get used to seeing helpful, friendly faces and before you know it, instead of merely stopping by a coffee shop to grab your favorite cup of joe, a connection is made. Patrons become invested in the success of the company because they’re invested in the relationships they’ve fostered with the staff.

And so the cycle begins.



This is the type of emotional correlation that breeds success, but these connections can only occur when employees are valued and supplied the proper modifications at work. With that being said, shame on you, Starbucks.



Obviously, most of the adult world couldn’t function without their java, but that doesn’t give companies like Starbucks a pass on providing disabled employees proper accommodations.



Laura Roberts, a Starbucks employee for seven years, has filed a lawsuit against Starbucks. She claims that the store fired her in retaliation after she repeatedly asked for American Sign Language (ASL) accommodates.



Roberts, who has been Deaf since infancy, requested interpreters during staff and training meetings on various occasions.



She can read, and during her employment relied on a printed schedule for her hours. She also utilized her ability to lip-read in order to serve customers.



After a managerial transition, she was denied a printed schedule, and required to read her schedule from a posted list. Thus, limiting her ability to understand the hours she was required to work... Read More: http://theamericangenius.com/business-news/starbucks-sued-for-allegedly-discriminating-against-deaf-staff/



Related Post:

Deaf Customers Sue Starbucks Over Mocking

Deaf Korean Starbucks Barista The Signs

Deaf Woman's Video At Starbucks Goes Viral

Deaf Customers Sue Starbucks Over Mocking

Deaf customers sue Starbucks, claim discrimination. Starbucks employees allegedly laughed at speech of hearing impaired customers in New York City.



NEW YORK CITY - Twelve Deaf Starbucks customers in New York City have filed a lawsuit against the Seattle-based coffee company, claiming discrimination. Starbucks employees allegedly mocked the customers multiple times over the course of several years, and once called the police on a monthly meeting of Deaf people.



"Cruel Employees" at two different Manhattan Starbucks mocked Deaf customers and refused to serve them, a stunning new lawsuit says.



"They were ridiculed, laughed at and told they had to leave Starbucks," said lawyer Eric Baum, who's suing on behalf of a dozen Deaf customers.



Jamie Riley, a spokeswoman for the mega-popular coffee chain, said they were aware of the allegations and were investigating them. "Discrimination of any kind is unacceptable at Starbucks," she said.



The suit says one incident took place at a Starbucks at 424 Park Ave. South in August 2012, when customer Alan Roth said a barista laughed when he placed his order, telling him he "sounded funny."



She "asked him to continually repeat himself as she laughed harder each time," and she was soon laughing "hysterically," the suit says.



When Roth demanded to speak to a manager, the employee started screaming obscenities at him and had to be restrained by other Starbucks staff, the suit says. Another employee told Roth to leave and never come back, the suit says.



Roth said he had "never before been so blatantly and maliciously been discriminated against."



The suit says Deaf customers also were forced to leave and had the cops called on them another time at the 13-25 Astor Place location, which had been chosen as the monthly gathering spot for an informal "Deaf Chat Coffee" social group. Read more at http://nydailynews.com/new-york/starbucks-employees-accused-refusing-serve-deaf-customers-article



Related Post:

Deaf Korean Starbucks Barista The Signs

Starbucks Sued For Discrimination Deaf Employee

Deaf Woman's Video At Starbucks Goes Viral

Deaf Girl's Family Sues Cochlear Ear Implants For $7.25M

VIDEO: Louisville jury punishes company with $7.25 million verdict for selling Meade County girl defective ear implants that shocked her. An electrical short caused an 8-year-old girl to be thrown to the ground, vomiting and convulsing. The shocks happened two more times until the device was disconnected.



Courier-journal.com: LOUISVILLE, KY - Born Deaf, Breanna Sadler of Vine Grove, Ky., had a cochlear ear device implanted in her head in 2006, when she was 4 years old. Four years later, an electrical short from the device shocked her so violently that she was thrown to the ground, vomiting and convulsing.



After she was shocked two more times, the device had to be removed from her skull and replaced with a competitor’s model in an open-head surgery that took more than seven hours.



Breanna’s parents sued the manufacturer, Advance Bionics of Valencia, Calif., accusing the company of continuing to sell the device after executives knew it was leaking and defective. On Tuesday a U.S. District Court jury in Louisville agreed, awarding Breanna, now 11, and her parents $7.25 million in damages.



In the first of about 40 lawsuits filed nationally to go to trial, the jury said the company should pay $6.25 million in punitive damages alone for recklessly disregarding patient safety.



The Sadlers’ lawyers presented evidence that Advance Bionics executives delayed disclosing the defect so they could sell more devices and get more money when the company was sold. They “chose to ignore risks and focus on profits, ” the attorneys said in a brief.



About 4,000 of the devices have been implanted worldwide, and about 1,000 have failed, according to lead plaintiff’s counsel Tim Edwards, who estimated that dozens of patients in the Louisville area are “walking around with the devices in their head that have failed or will fail.” ...READ MORE: http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20130418/NEWS10/304180041/Louisville-jury-awards-girl-7-2-million-hearing-aid-gave-her-shocks

Advanced Bionics HiResolution Bionic Ear System.

USATODAY LOUISVILLE, KY - A federal jury has awarded $7.25 million in damages to an 11-year-old girl who suffered severe electric shocks from a defective cochlear-ear implant that has been inserted in 4,000 people most of Deaf children.



Born Deaf, Breanna Sadler of Vine Grove, Ky., had a cochlear ear device implanted in her head in 2006, when she was 4 years old. Four years later, an electrical short shocked her so violently that she was thrown to the ground, vomiting and convulsing.



After she was shocked two more times, the device had to be removed from her skull and replaced with a competitor’s model in an open-head surgery that took more than seven hours.



Her parents sued the manufacturer, Advance Bionics of Valencia, Calif., and on Tuesday a U.S. District Court jury here awarded Breanna, now 11, and her parents the money.



In the first of about 40 lawsuits filed nationally to go to trial, the jury said the company should pay $6.25 million in punitive damages alone for recklessly disregarding patient safety by continuing to sell the device after company officials knew it was leaking and defective.



The Sadlers’ lawyers presented evidence that Advance Bionics executives delayed disclosing the defect so they could sell more devices and get more money when the company was sold. They ” chose to ignore risks and focus on profits,” the lawyers said in a brief.



About 4,000 of the devices have been implanted worldwide, and about 1,000 have failed, according to lead plaintiff’s counsel Tim Edwards of Memphis. ...READ MORE: http://m.usatoday.com/article/news/2094397



Related Hearing Parents With Deaf Children:

Interview With Hearing Parents Of A Deaf Son

Educate Hearing Parents of Deaf Children

Early Language Acquisition of Deaf Babies

Deaf Awareness: One Deaf Child

Deaf Culture - Have We Cured Deafness ?

American Sign Language For Babies & Toddlers

Cochlear Implants Is NOT A Cure !

Cochlear Business Is Dirty Business!

Why Is It Important To Learn Sign At Birth For Deaf Child ?

Educating Hearing People About The Deaf World