SACRAMENTO, Calif. (CN) — A federal judge on Friday tossed swaths of a lawsuit brought by people with disabilities who say they can’t navigate Sacramento's sidewalks because of homeless encampments.
Susan Hood, Chester McNabb, Roland Haley, Connie Manselle and Kenneth Barstow sued the city and county of Sacramento this past February, claiming homeless encampments and debris like broken glass force them off sidewalks and into busy streets.
The city and county argued that the plaintiffs lack standing and can't state a claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act and Rehabilitation Act.
U.S. District Court Chief Judge Kimberly Mueller agreed in part on Friday. She dismissed McNabb, Haley and Barstow’s claims against the county, and Hood and Barstow’s claims against the city. All may amend their complaint within three weeks.
The judge also dismissed their state claims, which can be refiled in state court.
Mueller found Haley and Barstow never claimed they encountered encampments or other issues on county sidewalks, and determined McNabb never made those claims either.
However, “because Hood and Manselle allege they encountered encampments and barriers while traveling on county sidewalks, they have established a concrete injury,” the judge wrote.
Turning to the ADA claims, Mueller wrote that a successful claim must show someone is a qualified person with a disability, was excluded from or denied a public entity’s services, programs or activities, and that the exclusion stemmed from their disability.
The city and county argued no one said they were denied all access to sidewalks, and that they couldn’t successfully claim their disability denied them that access.
Hood, who is legally blind, claims she couldn’t access any location in the county. However, Mueller found Hood never claimed she was unable to get somewhere in the city because of encampments — meaning she’s made no claim against Sacramento.
Barstow says he’s faced sidewalk obstructions, finding them tough to navigate.
“Construing the factual allegations in the light most favorable to them, all plaintiffs but Barstow have plausibly alleged defendants’ sidewalks are systematically unavailable to them because they cannot access specific destinations within the city and/or county,” Mueller wrote. “Although Hood alleges she has had difficulty navigating city sidewalks, she has not alleged the sidewalks are unavailable to her.”
The judge also sided with the city in its request to strike a small portion of the complaint which discusses pop-up vendors, as well as electric scooters and e-bikes, impeding Haley’s travel on sidewalks. Haley was told to take pictures of the scooters and e-bikes’ license plates and send them to the city. The only sanction would be a fine on the vendor.
The complaint is one of a handful about homelessness the city and county are juggling.
A suit filed by the Sacramento Homeless Union remains pending, with one issue awaiting a ruling from the Ninth Circuit.
The homeless union filed suit against city and county, saying they endangered unhoused people by moving them from shady areas during a 2021 heat wave. A federal judge prohibited the city for much of August from clearing encampments, though that prohibition has since expired.
Additionally, Sacramento County District Attorney Thien Ho filed suit against the city over homelessness in September, saying Sacramento had failed to enforce its own laws. The suit came about a month after Ho sent a letter to the city demanding action in 30 days.
Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg at the time called the legal move a “performative distraction.” He added that no other local government in the region has done more to address the homelessness crisis. The mayor pointed to 1,200 new emergency beds, the city’s sidewalk and critical infrastructure ordinances, and thousands of new affordable housing units.
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