LAFAYETTE – A disabled Lafayette Parish man alleges a Lafayette dry cleaner is not accessible to him because of his wheelchair.
Shannon Ravare filed a complaint on May 3 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana against Buddy Rhodes Inc. alleging that the property owner violated Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Louisiana Commission on Human Rights.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff alleges that on March 17, due to the lack of a curb ramp for his wheelchair, plaintiff was unable to enter defendant's building to secure his dry cleaning. The suit states that because he could not enter the dry cleaners, he honked his horn until an attendant came out. Plaintiff claims he was forced to give the attendant his debit card and tell his proprietary Personal Identification Number and was advised that he is not welcome at the property without a friend in the future.
The plaintiff seeks an order directing defendant to alter the property to make it accessible to and useable by individuals with mobility disabilities, award for compensatory damages, attorneys’ fees, costs and expenses and all further relief as it deems necessary, just and proper. He is represented by Andrew D. Bizer, Garret S. DeReus and Marc P. Florman of Bizer & DeReus in New Orleans.
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana Case number 6:17-cv-00599