to this attention. ECF No. 20-1. The purpose of this Statement of Interest is to See Court’s reiterate the United position on the applicability of Title II of the ADA to law States’ enforcement activities and to clarify that the law does not create a categorical exception for law enforcement personnel during exigent circumstances. Title II Applies to All Law Enforcement Activities, Including Stops and Arrests. 1. The Language of the Statute, and the Department of Justice Regulations and Guidance, Make Plain That Title II Applies to Arrests. Title antidiscrimination provision provides that no individual with a disability II’s “shall, by reason of such disability, be excluded from participation in or be denied the benefits of the services, programs, or activities of a public entity, or be subjected to discrimination by any such 42 U.S.C. § 12132. The starting point in determining the applicability to law entity.” ADA’s enforcement operations is the statutory text. 524 U.S. See Pennsylvania of Corr. v. Yeskey, Dep’t 206, 209–10 (1998) (ruling that state prisons squarely within the statutory definition of “fall in Title II of the ADA). By its plain terms, Title II applies to all governmental ‘public entity’” entities, including law enforcement agencies. Title II uses the term in its ordinary “any” sense, or some indiscriminately of whatever i.e., United States v. “expansive” “one kind.” 520 U.S. 1, 5 (1997) (citation omitted). Moreover, the statutory text contains no Gonzales, that could cast the coverage law enforcement entities 524 Yeskey, “exception of” “into doubt.” U.S. at 209. Accordingly, law enforcement agencies fall within the comprehensive ADA’s definition of a public entity. The statutory text further demonstrates that law enforcement entities are subject to Title antidiscrimination mandate with respect to all of their operations, including arrests. The II’s reference to programs, or 42 U.S.C. § 12132, is an all-inclusive phrase that “services, activities,” covers everything a public entity does. Notably, Congress expressly defined the term “[p]rogram
to this Court’s attention. See ECF No. 20-1. The purpose of this Statement of Interest is to reiterate the United States’ position on the applicability of Title II of the ADA to law enforcement activities and to clarify that the law does not create a categorical exception for law enforcement personnel during exigent circumstances. Title II Applies to All Law Enforcement Activities, Including Stops and Arrests. 1. The Language of the Statute, and the Department of Justice Regulations and Guidance, Make Plain That Title II Applies to Arrests. Title II’s antidiscrimination provision provides that no individual with a disability “shall, by reason of such disability, be excluded from participation in or be denied the benefits of the services, programs, or activities of a public entity, or be subjected to discrimination by any such entity.” 42 U.S.C. § 12132. The starting point in determining the ADA’s applicability to law enforcement operations is the statutory text. See Pennsylvania Dep’t of Corr. v. Yeskey, 524 U.S. 206, 209–10 (1998) (ruling that state prisons “fall squarely within the statutory definition of ‘public entity’” in Title II of the ADA). By its plain terms, Title II applies to all governmental entities, including law enforcement agencies. Title II uses the term “any” in its ordinary “expansive” sense, i.e., “one or some indiscriminately of whatever kind.” United States v. Gonzales, 520 U.S. 1, 5 (1997) (citation omitted). Moreover, the statutory text contains no “exception that could cast the coverage of” law enforcement entities “into doubt.” Yeskey, 524 U.S. at 209. Accordingly, law enforcement agencies fall within the ADA’s comprehensive definition of a public entity. The statutory text further demonstrates that law enforcement entities are subject to Title II’s antidiscrimination mandate with respect to all of their operations, including arrests. The reference to “services, programs, or activities,” 42 U.S.C. § 12132, is an all-inclusive phrase that covers everything a public entity does. Notably, Congress expressly defined the term “[p]rogram
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