Subject to Court Approval

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF MISSISSIPPI
JACKSON DIVISION

SCOTT M. CRAWFORD, et. al.,

Plaintiffs,
and

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff-Intervenor,
v.

CITY OF JACKSON AND
CITY OF JACKSON PUBLIC
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM
("JATRAN")

Defendants.

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Civil Action No. 3:08-cv-586-TSL-FKB

HON. TOM S. LEE
United States Senior District Judge

HON. F. KEITH BALL
Magistrate Judge


Press Release

JOINT MOTION TO EXTEND AND REVISE CONSENT DECREE

On March 30, 2010, this Court entered a Consent Decree to resolve this case. Paragraph 84 states that the Order shall remain in effect for five years from that effective date, until March 30, 2015.

The City of Jackson has made improvements in its provision of accessible public transportation services ("JATRAN"). However, the parties are in agreement that the City of Jackson has not reached full compliance with the Consent Decree, and an 18 month extension is warranted to allow for additional time to meet all of the terms of the Decree, until September 30, 2016.

The parties agree the City needs additional time to comply with the following requirements of the Consent Decree:

  1. Maintaining the accessibility features on all vehicles in operative condition (e.g., wheelchair lifts/ramps).  Consent Decree ¶¶ 19-20.
  2. Conducting daily operational checks of wheelchair lifts/ramps each morning, which includes cycling the lifts and record the results.  Consent Decree ¶ 20(B)-(C).
  3. Removing buses with inoperable lifts/ramps from service at the beginning of the service day or when discovered to be inoperable, or within three days if there is no replacement bus available and removing the bus from service would substantially delay or disrupt the bus service schedule.  Consent Decree ¶ 20(E)-(F).
  4. Performing preventative maintenance on the accessibility features of its buses in accordance with, at a minimum, the manufacturer’s recommendations.  Consent Decree ¶¶ 22-23.
  5. Establishing an ADA Coordinator in the Department of Planning and Development, who reports to the Director, and who is responsible for carrying out day-to-day compliance of JATRAN with title II of the ADA.  Consent Decree ¶¶ 45-49.
  6. Maintaining and reporting certain data and records, including each lift/ramp malfunction and subsequent servicing, lift/ramp preventative maintenance, and paratransit telephone access.  Maintain certain data for compliance assessment by the Auditor and the United States.  Consent Decree ¶ 66.

To facilitate reporting by the City and monitoring by the United States going forward, the City agrees to submit the data in Paragraph 66 on a monthly basis for the remainder of the Decree. The City will also continue to submit written report provided every six months, as outlined in Paragraph 68.

Paragraph 84 will be amended to state that the Consent Decree will expire on September 30, 2016, unless the interests of justice require further extension.

Accordingly,

IT IS SO ORDERED

 

 

__________________________
Tom S. Lee
United States Senior District Judge

 

__________________________
Date

AGREED AND CONSENTED TO BY:

FOR THE UNITED STATES:

ERIC H. HOLDER, JR.
Attorney General of the United States

GREGORY K. DAVIS
United States Attorney
Southern District of Mississippi

MITZI DEASE PAIGE
MSB # 6014
Assistant United States Attorney      
United States Attorney’s Office
Southern District of Mississippi
501 E. Court Street
Suite 4.430
Jackson, MS  39201
Telephone:  (601) 973-2840
mitzi.paige@usdoj.gov


VANITA GUPTA
Acting Assistant Attorney General
Civil Rights Division

EVE L. HILL
Deputy Assistant Attorney General
Civil Rights Division

REBECCA B. BOND
Chief
KATHLEEN P. WOLFE
Special Litigation Counsel
KEVIN KIJEWSKI
Deputy Chief
Disability Rights Section
Civil Rights Division

 

/s/ David W. Knight               
DAVID W. KNIGHT
EUGENIA ESCH
Trial Attorneys
Disability Rights Section
Civil Rights Division
U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW – NYA
Washington, D.C.  20530
Telephone: (202) 616-2110
david.knight@usdoj.gov
eugenia.esch@usdoj.gov

 

FOR PRIVATE PLAINTIFFS:

 

/s/ Frances Kay Hardage
FRANCES KAY HARDAGE
MSB # 3061
Disability Rights Mississippi
210 East Capitol Street
Suite 600
Jackson, Mississippi  48334
Phone: 601-968-0600

FOR THE CITY OF JACKSON:

/s/ Claire Barker Hawkins
MONICA JOINER
MSB # 102154
Azande Williams
MSB # 100161
Claire Barker Hawkins
MSB # 101312
Office of the City Attorney
455 East Capitol Street
Jackson, Mississippi  39207
Telephone:  601-960-1799

March 10, 2015
Date

 

 

 

 

 

March 10, 2015
Date

 
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