Filed Date: Oct. 4, 1979
Closed Date: Feb. 27, 1980
Clearinghouse coding complete
On October 4, 1979, a deaf Maryland prisoner filed this 42 U.S.C. § 1983 civil rights lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, against officials of the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services. Plaintiff, who was represented by the National Association of the Deaf Legal Defense Fund, sought declaratory and injunctive relief, alleging that the defendants failed to provide sign language interpreters to prisoners.
On February 27, 1980, the District Court (Judge Frank A. Kaufman) approved a consent decree under which defendants agreed to provide sign language interpreters to deaf prisoners under a variety of circumstances. The decree established certain hiring criteria for establishing that the sign language interpreter was qualified. The defendants were also ordered to pay the plaintiff $3,000 plus fees. Finally, the decree constituted a full settlement of the lawsuit and the plaintiff waived any other past, present or future claim related to the underlying events. 491 F.Supp. 204 (D. Md. 1980).
The case predates PACER and we do not have any additional information--including on whether there was any enforcement activity. Because it happened so long ago, we presume the case is closed, but the terms of the injunction have no end-date. It does not seem that a class action was certified, so likely, the case was mooted by the plaintiff's release, at some point.
Summary Authors
Eoghan Keenan (5/25/2005)
Priyah Kaul (11/25/2014)
Kaufman, Frank Albert (Maryland)
Charmatz, Marc P. (Maryland)
DuBow, Seymour (District of Columbia)
Niman, Kenneth F. (Maryland)
Caplis, Stephen B. (Maryland)
Kaufman, Frank Albert (Maryland)
Last updated March 31, 2024, 3:17 a.m.
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.State / Territory: Maryland
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: Oct. 4, 1979
Closing Date: Feb. 27, 1980
Case Ongoing: No reason to think so
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Deaf inmate of Maryland prison
Plaintiff Type(s):
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: Unknown
Class Action Outcome: Unknown
Defendants
Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, State
Defendant Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Constitutional Clause(s):
Available Documents:
Injunctive (or Injunctive-like) Relief
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Form of Settlement:
Court Approved Settlement or Consent Decree
Amount Defendant Pays: 3,169.00
Order Duration: 1980 - None
Content of Injunction:
Follow recruitment, hiring, or promotion protocols
Other requirements regarding hiring, promotion, retention
Issues
General:
Disability and Disability Rights:
Discrimination-area:
Discrimination-basis:
Disability (inc. reasonable accommodations)
Type of Facility: