Ten disabled plaintiffs filed a class-action lawsuit  in U.S. District Court last week that accuses the City of Portland of its “systemic failure to provide full and equal access to its sidewalks to Plaintiffs and similarly situated persons with mobility disabilities.”

Specifically, Portland has allowed the homeless to take over public sidewalks and criminals to run wild.

National Review  reports specifics on a few of the plaintiffs:

A 66-year-old woman who had a bottle thrown at her as she maneuvered around a Portland, Ore. homeless camp in her electric wheelchair.

A 62-year-old longtime Portland resident who relies on a wheelchair and a service dog, and who was assaulted, spat on, and sprayed with mace by homeless people in her neighborhood.

A 47-year-old man with a visual disability who walks in the busy street to get around the tents and garbage that clog the sidewalks in his Portland neighborhood.

The lawsuit states:

The City has failed and continues to fail to maintain its sidewalks clear of debris and tent encampments, which is necessary to make its sidewalks readily accessible to people with mobility disabilities. Indeed, a substantial number of the City’s sidewalks—particularly those in the City’s busiest business corridors—do not comply with applicable federal statutes and regulations because they are blocked by tent encampments and attendant debris, rendering the sidewalks inaccessible, dangerous, and unsanitary for people with mobility disabilities.

The City’s sidewalks are a fundamental public program, service, or activity that the City provides for the benefit of its residents and visitors. Clear and readily accessible sidewalks are necessary to permit people with mobility disabilities to independently, fully, and meaningfully participate in all aspects of society, including employment, housing, education, transportation, public accommodations, and recreation, among others. Accordingly, readily accessible sidewalks are essential to realizing the integration mandate of disability non-discrimination laws, including the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (the “ADA”) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (the “Rehabilitation Act”).

Plaintiffs are individuals with mobility disabilities or caretakers for individuals with mobility disabilities who live or work in Portland, and who are being denied full and equal access to the City’s sidewalks and subjected to unlawful or hazardous conditions.

The denial of meaningful, equal, and safe access to the City’s sidewalks for persons with mobility disabilities complained of in this Complaint is the direct result of the City’s policies, procedures, and practices with regard to sidewalks and unsheltered persons. The City has failed to adopt or implement reasonable administrative methods, policies, and procedures for inspecting, clearing, and maintaining the sidewalks, as required by the ADA and the Rehabilitation Act.