Dillery v. Sandusky

CourtCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
DecidedFebruary 18, 2005
Docket04-3314
StatusPublished

This text of Dillery v. Sandusky (Dillery v. Sandusky) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Dillery v. Sandusky, (6th Cir. 2005).

Opinion

RECOMMENDED FOR FULL-TEXT PUBLICATION Pursuant to Sixth Circuit Rule 206 File Name: 05a0079p.06

UNITED STATES COURTS OF APPEALS FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT _________________

X - Nos. 03-3465/3466 - - KELLY DILLERY, Plaintiff-Appellee/Cross-Appellant, - Nos. 03-3465/3466; 04-3314

, > v. - - - Defendants-Appellants/Cross-Appellees. - CITY OF SANDUSKY, et al.,

- - - No. 04-3314 - - Plaintiff-Appellant, - KELLY DILLERY,

- - - v. - - Defendants-Appellees. - CITY OF SANDUSKY, et al.,

- N Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio at Cleveland. No. 99-07353—David A. Katz, District Judge. Argued: December 9, 2004 Decided and Filed: February 18, 2005 Before: MERRITT, GIBBONS, and ROGERS, Circuit Judges. _________________ COUNSEL ARGUED: William P. Lang, Avon Lake, Ohio, for Defendants. K. Ronald Bailey, K. RONALD BAILEY & ASSOCIATES, Sandusky, Ohio, for Plaintiff. ON BRIEF: William P. Lang, Avon Lake, Ohio, for Defendants. K. Ronald Bailey, K. RONALD BAILEY & ASSOCIATES, Sandusky, Ohio, Linda R. Van Tine, Sandusky, Ohio, for Plaintiff. GIBBONS, J., delivered the opinion of the court, in which ROGERS, J., joined. MERRITT, J. (pp. 7-8), delivered a separate opinion concurring in part and dissenting in part.

1 Nos. 03-3465/3466; 04-3314 Dillery v. City of Sandusky, et al. Page 2

_________________ OPINION _________________ JULIA SMITH GIBBONS, Circuit Judge. Kelly Dillery is a disabled woman who uses a wheelchair or motorized scooter to move. Dillery sued the City of Sandusky, city commissioners, and several city employees, under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), the Rehabilitation Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1983, and various Ohio state law provisions. She alleged that Sandusky violated the ADA by failing to install proper curb cuts, such that Dillery was forced to ride her wheelchair in the street instead of on the sidewalk. Further, Dillery alleged that Sandusky police officers violated her rights by stopping her and, on several occasions, arresting her for riding her wheelchair in the street. The district court granted summary judgment to the defendants on all counts. Dillery filed a motion for reconsideration, based in part on United States District Judge James G. Carr’s ruling in a separate case against Sandusky, Ability Center of Greater Toledo v. City of Sandusky. The district court, based on Judge Carr’s ruling, granted Dillery’s motion in part, but found that her claims for injunctive relief had been essentially mooted. The defendants filed a notice of appeal, and Dillery filed a notice of cross-appeal. Dillery subsequently moved for attorneys’ fees and costs. The district court denied Dillery’s motion, finding that even if she was a prevailing party, she was not entitled to any fees. Dillery filed a timely notice of appeal. For the following reasons, we affirm the decisions of the district court. I. Dillery is a 35-year-old woman who suffers from Fredericks Ataxia, a progressive neurological disorder. The disease is characterized by speech impairment, peculiar swaying, and irregular movements, and she must use a motorized wheelchair to move. Neither party disputes that she is disabled within the meaning of the ADA. Dillery lives in Sandusky, Ohio. In 1975, Sandusky promulgated a policy to install curb ramps at intersections where work was being done in order to make the sidewalks handicapped accessible. Around this time, Sandusky also began a program to replace sidewalks, curbs, and gutters throughout the city. It is undisputed that Sandusky, despite undertaking this program, does not have a formal transition plan in place, as required by the ADA. Dillery often traveled in her wheelchair on the Sandusky streets, rather than on the sidewalk, because the sidewalk curbs, the unevenness of the sidewalk, and the slope of the sidewalk could overturn her wheelchair or cause her difficulty in maneuvering. On numerous occasions, police officers stopped Dillery for traveling in the streets and directed her to move to the sidewalk. Dillery continued to use the streets, however, because she believed that they provided a more level surface for her wheelchair than many of the city sidewalks. On June 1, 1998, Dillery was riding in her wheelchair to her bank. In order to reach her bank, Dillery crossed from the north side of Perkins Avenue to the south side and then traveled along the south side of this street, where there were no sidewalks. According to a police report, she was observed traveling in the eastbound lane of Perkins Avenue and “[n]umerous vehicles had to stop or swerve to miss striking” her. The person reporting the incident also observed that another person was sitting in Dillery’s lap as she traveled this route. Nos. 03-3465/3466; 04-3314 Dillery v. City of Sandusky, et al. Page 3

Officer Tracy Brewer issued a citation to Dillery for being a pedestrian in the roadway.1 A judge found Dillery guilty of this offense and fined her $50 when she admitted in court that she was using the street. After this incident, Dillery continued to use her wheelchair in the street. On July 30, 1998, Dillery and her daughter went to buy school clothes at a store on Perkins Avenue. A motorist stopped at an intersection observed Dillery approach his vehicle on the passenger’s side of the car. Her daughter was in her lap. As Dillery passed the car, the motorist thought he saw Dillery’s daughter hit her head and arm on his car’s mirror. He reported the incident to the police, who subsequently called protective services. Protective services came to Dillery’s home the following day and checked her daughter, who displayed no signs of injury. However, the police still charged Dillery with child endangerment. Dillery was acquitted of this charge after a jury trial. On several other occasions, citizens complained to police officers about Dillery’s riding her wheelchair in the street and the fact that cars were swerving to avoid her or nearly hitting her. Police officers investigated these complaints and cited Dillery for being a pedestrian in the roadway. Dillery subsequently filed suit against the City of Sandusky, members of its City Commission in their official capacities, the City Engineer, Chief of Police, and Acting Police Chief in their official capacities, and Officer Tracy Brewer, individually and in her capacity as a police officer, in the Northern District of Ohio. She sought a preliminary injunction against the defendants to prevent them from “arresting or otherwise harassing her” in the City of Sandusky and also to prohibit them from installing or changing any buildings, streets, or walkways, unless the changes comported with the requirements of the ADA. She also alleged violations of the Rehabilitation Act, the ADA, and various state and federal provisions. She sought injunctive and declaratory relief, compensatory damages, and attorneys’ fees and costs. The defendants moved for summary judgment. The district court granted this motion in its entirety. Dillery filed a motion for reconsideration or to alter or amend the judgment. The court granted the motion in part as follows: (1) it vacated the portion of the opinion granting summary judgment to the city “on the matter of Defendant’s compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act sidewalk accessibility regulations;” and (2) it adopted portions of Judge Carr’s final order in Ability Center of Greater Toledo v. City of Sandusky, an opinion that held that Sandusky violated the ADA by failing to install proper curb cuts and ramps at numerous intersections. The remainder of the motion was denied. The defendants filed a timely notice of appeal from this judgment. Dillery filed a timely notice of cross-appeal. In March 2003, Dillery filed a motion for attorneys’ fees and costs pursuant to the ADA.

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Dillery v. Sandusky, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/dillery-v-sandusky-ca6-2005.