$60,000 for not allowing service dogs in store

rockin'robin

rockin'robin

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The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries fined the owner of a convenience store $60,000 on Monday for refusing to allow a customer with service dogs into her store in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act reported the RegisterGuard.com.

In April 2013, Michele Hilt-Hayden and her husband entered the Duck Stop Market on Franklin Boulevard in Glenwood to buy milk with two service dogs and were told to leave by store employees. A sign posted on the window of the store stated service dogs were allowed. Hilt-Hayden is classified as legally blind although she has limited vision of six to ten feet. Kara Johnson is the owner of the store.

A dispute followed, which included allegations that an employee of the market followed Hilt-Hayden and repeatedly photographed her, contending the woman did not have a real disability. According to federal and state law, a store owner or its employees are only permitted to ask the following

"When it is not obvious what service an animal provides, only limited inquiries are allowed. Staff may ask two questions: (1) is the dog a service animal required because of a disability, and (2) what work or task has the dog been trained to perform. Staff cannot ask about the person’s disability, require medical documentation, require a special identification card or training documentation for the dog, or ask that the dog demonstrate its ability to perform the work or task."

Hilt-Hayden also suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental illness. It was determined that Johnson caused "physical, emotional and mental suffering" to Hilt-Hayden. Johnson was also ordered to pay for her staff to be trained in Oregon's disability laws.

Hilt-Hayden had previously returned to the store with the owner of Sunstone Service Dogs, an organization that partners service animals with people with disabilities to no avail. Johnson then decided only one of the dogs would be allowed in the store.

Johnson plans to appeal.

http://www.examiner.com/article/oregon-store-owner-fined-60-000-for-not-allowing-service-dogs-store
 
LoveBlue said:
My question is why 2 dogs.
Click to expand...

If I'm reading this right, I think one dog belonged to Hilt-Hayden, the other belonged to Sunstone Service Dogs. I don't think it was one person trying to bring in two dogs.
 
I had never seen a blind person walk their guide dog using leash and walking stick . I seen them walk their guide dog like in the photo. I thought the dogs were trained to walk a blind person so they would not need the walking stick . The second might be more of social dog to help with the woman mental illness , but I feel the guide dog could do that too.
I can see why the store did not believe the woman , either dog is wearing the handle to 'guide' her .





g-dog-sf72.jpg
 
If you read the comments in that article it is explained too, that sometimes one dog will be training another dog. Also some people may have more than one disability for which each dog is trained differently. That was my first thought, more than one disability.
 
Annie09Z said:
If you read the comments in that article it is explained too, that sometimes one dog will be training another dog. Also some people may have more than one disability for which each dog is trained differently. That was my first thought, more than one disability.
Click to expand...

I only read what I saw on the post , I thought the link was the same as the post. I have had heard of a dog being trained to more than one thing. Some places do not accepted dogs that are used at a 'social ' service dog . I read a book about a vet having PTSD and not being allowed in businesses with his service dog . Some people thought I was 'blind' when I was out with Finlay . I had to bring with Finlay me b/c a guy that lived his my condo was lying about my dog barking the whole time I went out . No one else heard my dog barked. I had seen blind people with a guide dog and they all used the handle the was on their dog , they did not use a leash and walking stick.

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/until-tuesday-luis-carlos-montalv-n/1117992918?ean=9781401324292
 
some dogs trained to react to someone about to have seizure awkward if it someone else in vicinity who going to
 
I think it is basically about attempt discriminating person with disabilities when it comes to doing business in the public. No one is allowed to question their disability once they declare themselves as disability. Does not matter what kind of accommodation, guide dog happen to be one of them and that's enough for that person with disability. Same concept here with relay service, no one is allowed to question more than one's Deaf or HoH that can not function as traditional telephone conversation (the big fat period), does not matter if Deaf or Hoh use what kind of relay, can be text relay, AIM relay, Video Relay, the whatever relay. Nobody is allowed question them which Relay service they use, its really none of their business really.

So its about the discrimination, not the dogs.
 
Hello my partner is hard of hearing and I find this disgusting and discriminatory posts
 
I would think she has the dogs on those leashes like that in order to have her hands free. The article mentions she has PTSD, I'm sure being followed and harassed by the store employee was incredibly distressing for her.
 
turns out Michel Hilt Hayden is a fraud.
 

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rockin'robin said:
The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries fined the owner of a convenience store $60,000 on Monday for refusing to allow a customer with service dogs into her store in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act reported the RegisterGuard.com.

In April 2013, Michele Hilt-Hayden and her husband entered the Duck Stop Market on Franklin Boulevard in Glenwood to buy milk with two service dogs and were told to leave by store employees. A sign posted on the window of the store stated service dogs were allowed. Hilt-Hayden is classified as legally blind although she has limited vision of six to ten feet. Kara Johnson is the owner of the store.

A dispute followed, which included allegations that an employee of the market followed Hilt-Hayden and repeatedly photographed her, contending the woman did not have a real disability. According to federal and state law, a store owner or its employees are only permitted to ask the following

"When it is not obvious what service an animal provides, only limited inquiries are allowed. Staff may ask two questions: (1) is the dog a service animal required because of a disability, and (2) what work or task has the dog been trained to perform. Staff cannot ask about the person’s disability, require medical documentation, require a special identification card or training documentation for the dog, or ask that the dog demonstrate its ability to perform the work or task."

Hilt-Hayden also suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental illness. It was determined that Johnson caused "physical, emotional and mental suffering" to Hilt-Hayden. Johnson was also ordered to pay for her staff to be trained in Oregon's disability laws.

Hilt-Hayden had previously returned to the store with the owner of Sunstone Service Dogs, an organization that partners service animals with people with disabilities to no avail. Johnson then decided only one of the dogs would be allowed in the store.

Johnson plans to appeal.

http://www.examiner.com/article/oregon-store-owner-fined-60-000-for-not-allowing-service-dogs-store
Click to expand...

The store owner sounds like a jerk. Assuming that one dog was a service dog and the other was their pet, I still wouldn't have harassed the customer. I'm delighted the court sided in her favor.

Laura
 
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