In 1986, developmentally disabled citizens of the state of Missouri filed a class action lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. §1983 and the Developmental Disabilities Act of 1984 (42 U.S.C. §6000), against the state of Missouri in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri. The plaintiffs alleged that their rights had been violated by Missouri's failure to develop and implement individual habilitation plans for them.

On August 13, 1987, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri (Judge Scott O. Wright) held that the state's program received federal funds under the Developmental Disabilities Act (DD Act), and thus the state was required to ensure that each individual found to be developmentally disabled had a habilitation plan or received appropriate services. The court also held that the individual plaintiffs had a private cause of action to enforce the provisions of the DD Act requiring assurances in the state plan that services were provided in an individualized manner. Finally, the court held that a voluntarily confined individual's due process liberty interests were not violated by the state's failure to place the individual in community placement after a professional recommendation that he be so placed. Gieseking v. Schafer, 672 F.Supp. 1249 (W.D.Mo. 1987).

The court appointed a Special Master, and on January 20, 1989, the district court (Judge Wright) adopted the Master's recommendation that the plaintiffs' claims be dismissed, holding that the defendants were in substantial compliance with the DD Act. The court then ordered that all parties bear their own costs for this litigation.

We have no further information on the proceedings in this case.

Kristen Sagar - 08/07/2006


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