Arkansas correction division to enter settlement over disability law violations

Inmates with mobility disabilities were not provided accessible cells or showers

By Ainsley Platt, Arkansas Advocate

Arkansas’ prison administration agency will enter into a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice over violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act at its Malvern facility, Department of Corrections staff told members of the Board of Corrections on Tuesday.

The DOJ found that the Division of Correction (ADC) violated the ADA by failing to provide proper accommodations to inmates with mobility disabilities, excluding them from “safely accessing or participating in its programs, services, activities, and facilities.” The settlement will require the unit to make several changes to ensure compliance, but does not involve a monetary penalty, according to Tawnie Rowell, chief legal officer for the Department of Corrections.

Rowell told board members that the Justice Department’s investigation started with complaints about scalding showers. Once the federal agency started investigating, agents conducted a top-down review.

“We ended up in a less than desirable situation because Ouachita River’s construction was under an old version of the ADA,” Rowell said.

The ADA, first passed by Congress in 1990, prohibits disability discrimination by federal, state and local government and requires employers and government to provide reasonable accommodations to those with disabilities. It was amended in 2008 to broaden the definition of disability in response to U.S. Supreme Court rulings. Disabilities covered under the act can be mental or physical, and do not need to be permanent.

The settlement had been brought before the board earlier this year, Rowell said, but ADC staff had gone back to try to address concerns about DOJ’s access to Division of Correction facilities as part of ongoing compliance monitoring.

“We got this, I think, about as good as they’re willing to go,” Rowell said. “It does still require that we provide a fair amount of access, but we did make it clear that it’s limited to the Ouachita River facility and it’s not going to be global.”

According to a copy of the settlement agreement, the Justice Department began investigating after “inmates with mobility disabilities” said the prison administration failed to provide them with accessible cells and showers at the Ouachita River Unit, causing “ongoing physical harm.”

The inmates also said they were injured by “scalding showers,” and “were not given necessary support or supplies to physically transfer between their wheelchairs and beds, showers, and toilets.” The agreement also noted the inmates said they were not provided adequate medical care.

A survey conducted by the federal government in 2021 found that the Ouachita River Unit had “barriers to access” for inmates with mobility impairments, the settlement document said.

Under the settlement agreement the ADC cannot discriminate against or exclude inmates from medical care, daily activities, education and other programs and services on the basis of their disability.

The division must make a minimum of 3% of the cells in the Ouachita River Unit accessible to inmates with disabilities, and must provide accommodations such as shower chairs and wheelchair maintenance. The settlement also requires the division to appoint an ADA coordinator.

Complying with the settlement will require capital improvements to the unit. The corrections department will be required to hire a DOJ-approved architect to assess whether the fixes made comport with the disability law.

The board approved up to $500,000 for the work at a previous meeting, Rowell said.

The division will also be required to establish and implement “comprehensive housing policies” to ensure inmates with disabilities are housed in “safe, appropriate housing.” The division will be required to report its progress on compliance efforts to the DOJ every six months.

The Arkansas Advocate is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization dedicated to tough, fair daily reporting and investigative journalism that holds public officials accountable and focuses on the relationship between the lives of Arkansans and public policy.