Power the Civil Rights Work of Our Time
Each day members of our community are experiencing wage theft, the effects of gentrification, discriminatory policing, collateral consequences, marginalization in schools, and barriers to public accommodations.
We fight alongside people facing the effects of gentrification like Amira Moore. Our work empowers the people and communities who need it most, “We can do more than we think. There’s a path to equity, we just have to step to it.” –Ms. Moore
For more than 50 years, the Washington Lawyers’ Committee has been on the frontlines of the fight for civil rights in our community. We deploy the best legal talent, we tackle the tough cases, we fight, and we win.
Our work is as important today as it has ever been. Through your support, you can play a role in creating justice for thousands of marginalized members of our community. Together, we will dismantle injustice and pursue lasting change.
Join us! Donate & subscribe: https://www.washlaw.org/support-us
Volunteer with us: https://www.washlaw.org/get-involved/
For more information, contact Gregg Kelley at Gregg_Kelley@washlaw.org
Judge Upholds D.C. Law Giving
Non-Citizens Voting Rights
A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit last week against the District of Columbia Board of Elections that sought to invalidate a law giving non-citizens a right to vote in local elections.
The Local Resident Voting Rights Amendment Act would allow anyone who is a resident of the District of Columbia to vote, even if they are illegal aliens.
The Act also permits non-citizen residents to run for D.C. government positions and to serve on the District’s Board of Elections.
The law prompted opposition in Congress but not enough to override it.
U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson said the seven plaintiffs could not prove they would suffer any damages from the law that might give them standing to sue.
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Legal Briefs
We Could Use Your Help
Thousands of DC residents need a lawyer, but can’t afford one. They could be illegally evicted from their homes, lose custody of their children, experience domestic violence, and more, all because they lack legal representation.
You could make a difference. By making a donation to the Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia, you will provide free, high-quality, zealous legal representation to low-income DC residents.
Your support could prevent homelessness, domestic violence, hunger, or family separation. In fact, if just 10 people who see this ad give $28 to Legal Aid, it will be enough to staff an experienced attorney at the courthouse for a day.
That way, DC residents like Keith King (pictured above) can get the legal representation they need to win their cases. As Mr. King put it, if it wasn’t for his Legal Aid lawyer, “I would have been homeless again.”
Here is the link to the Legal Aid website for donations: https://www.legalaiddc.org/donate-to-legal-aid/
For more information, contact Rob Pergament at Legal Aid at rpergament@legalaiddc.org
D.C. Reaches $515 Million Deal
To Keep Sports Teams Downtown
The District of Columbia Council reached a deal Wednesday to keep the Washington Wizards basketball team and Washington Capitals hockey team in downtown Washington through 2050.
The deal ends years of legal wrangling as the teams’ owners from Monumental Sports and Entertainment threatened to move to a larger space in Alexandria.
The D.C. Council promised $515 million for renovation and expansion of the sports complex anchored by Capital One Arena if Monumental keeps its teams in Washington.
“We’re going to be together for a long time,” Mayor Muriel Bowser said at a press conference.
As recently as last week, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb implied the possibility of legal action to keep Monumental’s teams in Washington under its lease agreement.
Monumental was seeking Virginia General Assembly approval for a $2 billion plan to build a new arena in Alexandria.
Until Wednesday, Monumental Sports and Entertainment Chief Executive Ted Leonsis said relocation to the Potomac Yard neighborhood in Alexandria would help the company consolidate its operations.
“Right now, we have 3.8 acres,” Leonsis said on his company’s website about Capital One Arena. “In Potomac Yard we will have 12 acres. Currently, we can only program inside the arena. At Potomac Yard, we will be able to program the entire area, creating an exceptional and contiguous fan experience.”
Other parts of the deal with the D.C. Council would give Monumental 200,000 square feet in additional space and transportation improvements in the Chinatown neighborhood.
Leonsis envisions turning the additional space into a downtown entertainment district, rather than focusing primarily on sports.
Supreme Court Skeptical of Ban
On Abortion Pill Mifepristone
A hearing Tuesday before the Supreme Court indicated a majority of the justices want to maintain women’s access to the abortion pill mifepristone despite objections from anti-abortion activists.
The doctors and organizations who sued argued the Food and Drug Administration was wrong in granting approval of the drug.
Mifepristone is used in nearly two-thirds of abortions in the United States.
A major issue in the appeal is whether the activists who sued had standing, which refers to the ability to prove they would suffer a harm if they lose their case.
Justice Elena Kagan challenged the attorney for the anti-abortion activists to name anyone who would suffer harm if FDA authorization for mifepristone continues.
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D.C. in Brief
FEMA Worker’s Discrimination Claim
Dismissed for Lack of Evidence
A D.C. federal judge last week dismissed most of a hostile workplace lawsuit by an African American emergency relief worker against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
He said he was fired after he complained about unfair criticism based on his race.
U.S. District Judge Christopher R. Cooper acknowledged the worker was criticized by his supervisor but disagreed it was based on his race or rose to the level of creating a hostile workplace.
The lawsuit was filed under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1991, which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin.
The worker was a reservist in the Federal Emergency Management Agency's assistance cadre. He said in his complaint that his supervisor humiliated him in front of his coworkers while speaking with him harshly.
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Letters to the Editor
About Us
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The Legal Forum welcomes letters to the editor at tramstack@gmail.com, which will be published here.
Wrongful Death Lawsuit Blames 911
For Mishandling Mental Health Crisis
The family of a man who drowned in the Washington Channel during a mental health crisis is suing the District of Columbia for what the wrongful death lawsuit says was a slow emergency response.
The lawsuit says that if 911 dispatchers had not incorrectly classified the call as a drug overdose, officers might have saved David Earl Griffin, 47, after he jumped into the channel.
A drug overdose is a Priority 2 call, which “meant that the response from emergency responders would be far more delayed than the response would be for a Priority 1 call,” according to the lawsuit.
“As many as 10 calls were made to 911 within an approximate four minute time span, describing Mr. Griffin’s behavior and reporting that he was yelling, jumping on cars, and scaring bystanders,” says the lawsuit.
The first emergency medical technician arrived at the scene 18 minutes after the 911 calls started on March 14, 2022. The first police officer took at least half an hour to arrive.
“Had police officers arrived on scene before Mr. Griffin jumped into the Washington Channel, those officers would have been able to assist in controlling Mr. Griffin, preventing Mr. Griffin from jumping into the channel and avoiding his death,” the lawsuit says.
An attorney for Griffin’s family said the incident was typical of years-long problems with the D.C. Office of Unified Communications, which handles 911 calls.
The suit mentioned other examples of what it described as improper responses to emergencies by dispatchers and police. The other examples apparently are intended to show a recurring pattern of behavior that implies negligence.
The lawsuit claims the District of Columbia failed to comply with the Neighborhood Engagement Achieves Results Act by not having teams trained to respond quickly to manage mental health crises.
Office of Unified Communications officials did not admit wrongdoing but did say they were counseling dispatchers on how to handle similar calls.
For more information, contact The Legal Forum (www.legal-forum.net) at email: tramstack@gmail.com or phone: 202-479-7240.