Filed Date: Sept. 17, 2010
Closed Date: 2014
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On September 17, 2010, prisoners with physical disabilities under the custody of the North Carolina Department of Corrections ("DOC") filed a putative class action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina under the Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 12101, et seq., and the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. § 794. The plaintiffs, represented by North Carolina Prisoner Legal Services, brought the suit against the state of North Carolina. They asked the Court for declaratory and injunctive relief, claiming that defendants discriminated against them. Specifically, they alleged that by reason of their disabilities, defendants denied them the benefits of the DOC's sentence reduction credit programs.
Prisoners within the DOC can earn credits that shorten their terms of incarceration if they work or participate in certain programs. Pursuant to the medical gain time policy, the DOC grants disabled inmates sentence reduction credits only if it determines that they are medically unfit to participate in the traditional sentence reduction credit programs. The plaintiffs alleged that the DOC's definition of "medically unfit" misclassified numerous prisoners with disabilities and excluded them from participation in the medical gain time program even when they were physically unable to participate in traditional sentence reduction credit programs. Furthermore, even when prisoners with disabilities were given the opportunity to earn sentence reduction credits through the medical gain time policy, the DOC discriminated against them by providing the opportunity to earn credits at two-thirds the rate available to prisoners without disabilities.
On September 19, 2011, Judge Terrence Boyle granted class certification. The class was defined as all present and future prisoners of the DOC with disabilities "who have been, and may in the future be, discriminated against, excluded from participation in, and denied the benefits of the DOC's sentence reduction credit programs by reason of their disabilities." 276 F.R.D. 452.
On August 15, 2013, Judge Boyle approved the parties' stipulated consent decree. The agreement mandated that the DOC establish, implement, and modify its policies to provide access to sentence reduction credits to qualified prisoners with disabilities. The plaintiffs' attorneys must have an opportunity to review and comment on the proposed policy changes. Additionally, the DOC must create various new full-time positions, including a position dedicated to monitoring the implementation of the new policies and the consent decree. The DOC was required to pay $56,199.02 to Prisoners Legal Services for expenses associated with the implementation of the consent decree. The requirements of the agreement were set to terminate two years following the date of entry, and the agreement allowed for judicial enforcement.
On November 1, 2013, Judge Boyle denied hearing any further action in the case from individuals other than through counsel in the suit. Judge Boyle’s decision did not prohibit individuals from filing separate and distinct suits.
This case is now closed.
Summary Authors
Nate West (11/11/2014)
Mary Kate Sickel (3/26/2018)
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/5563660/parties/bumgarner-v-north-carolina-department-of-correction/
Boyle, Terrence William (North Carolina)
Gates, James E. (North Carolina)
Coward, Emily S. (North Carolina)
Ferrari, Ann Marie (North Carolina)
Griffin, J. Phillip (North Carolina)
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/5563660/bumgarner-v-north-carolina-department-of-correction/
Last updated April 20, 2025, 8:48 a.m.
State / Territory: North Carolina
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Post-PLRA enforceable consent decrees
Key Dates
Filing Date: Sept. 17, 2010
Closing Date: 2014
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Prisoners with physical disabilities detained by the North Carolina Department of Corrections
Plaintiff Type(s):
Attorney Organizations:
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: Yes
Class Action Outcome: Granted
Defendants
State of North Carolina, State
Defendant Type(s):
Facility Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 12111 et seq.
Section 504 (Rehabilitation Act), 29 U.S.C. § 701
Available Documents:
Injunctive (or Injunctive-like) Relief
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Form of Settlement:
Court Approved Settlement or Consent Decree
Content of Injunction:
Develop anti-discrimination policy
Other requirements regarding hiring, promotion, retention
Amount Defendant Pays: $56,199.02
Issues
General/Misc.:
Disability and Disability Rights:
Discrimination Basis:
Disability (inc. reasonable accommodations)
Jails, Prisons, Detention Centers, and Other Institutions: