In April 2017, the ACLU filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the Sixth Circuit in support of a lawsuit that would prohibit discrimination against blind voters.
In several states, such as Oregon, Wisconsin and New Hampshire, an online ballot-marking tool allows blind voters to mark absentee ballots privately and independently, without forcing them to rely on sighted individuals to cast their ballot for them. Our brief argues that this accommodation is legally required under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
In November 2017 the Sixth Circuit reversed the lower court’s dismissal of the case, ruling that the plaintiffs had stated a claim and were entitled to prove their case.
(Hindel v. Husted; attorneys include ACLU of Michigan Legal Director Michael J. Steinberg and National ACLU Attorneys Sophia Lin Larkin and Claudia Center.)
Read our Fall 2018 Legal Docket.
