Barnes v. District of Columbia

• Court: District Court, District of Columbia
• Decided: March 28, 2025
• Docket: Civil Action No. 2024-0750
• Status: Published

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

MAKEL BARNES, et al.,

Plaintiffs,

v. Case No. 1:24-cv-750-RCL

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, et al.,

Defendants.

MEMORANDUM OPINION

Plaintiffs are two lifetime residents of the District of Columbia (the "District" or "D.C.")

who are currently incarcerated in facilities run by the Federal Bureau of Prisons ("BOP"). They

are in BOP facilities because they were each convicted of felony violations of the D.C. Code, and

a federal statute requires that such offenders ("D.C. Offenders") be committed to BOP correctional

facilities rather than to D.C. correctional facilities. Immediately prior to their incarceration, the

plaintiffs were high school students enrolled in special-education programs in the District of

Columbia Public Schools ("DCPS"), where they received special education and other related

services pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities Act ("IDEA").

Since the beginning of their incarceration in BOP facilities, the plaintiffs have been denied

the special education services they were receiving from DCPS in accordance with the IDEA. They

have sued both the District and BOP, alleging that the District has violated the IDEA by denying

them a free appropriate public education ("FAPE"). Because BOP, as a federal agency, is not

bound by the IDEA, the plaintiffs' suit against the BOP alleges constitutional rather than statutory

claims: They contend that the agency violated their due process rights by denying them access to

a FAPE without notice or a meaningful opportunity to be heard.