From the Los Angeles Times, AP/Wall Street Journal:

A special federal court ruled Friday that the vaccine additive thimerosal does not cause autism. The ruling, which came in three separate cases, follows a parallel ruling in 2009 that autism is not caused by the combination of thimerosal with the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine.

Experts said the rulings would likely be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals, as the earlier ruling has been.

More than 5,300 parents have filed claims seeking damages because they believe vaccines caused autism in their children. The court, a branch of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, expressed sympathy for the families but concluded that they had failed to prove their case.

From the Boston Globe:

The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating allegations that a Massachusetts school is violating federal civil rights law by using electrical skin shocks to discipline children with disabilities.

The probe follows a 2009 letter of complaint signed by more than 30 disability rights groups alleging that the facility’s use of “painful and dehumanizing behavioral techniques violates all principles of human rights.”

The Judge Rotenberg Educational Center of Canton, southwest of Boston, is believed to be the only school in the country that gives children electric shocks as a form of treatment. Its population of 200 students have such conditions as autism, mental retardation and emotional problems. Roughly half wear electrodes attached to their skin, allowing staff members to remotely trigger an electrical shock through a hand-held device.

The school’s methods have stirred controversy for decades, garnering support from parents and opposition from rights advocates and politicians.

Earlier posts here.

Company sees threat to free speech on the Internet

From Reuters/New York Times, AP/Forbes.com, CNN:

A judge in Milan has found three Google executives guilty of criminal privacy violation charges for allowing a cellphone video of the bullying of an Italian youth to be displayed on a company website in 2006.

Press reports said the video showed the boy, described as having Down syndrome or autism, being taunted by classmates while one of the teens made a mock phone call to a Down syndrome support group.

A Google spokesman said the company would appeal what it called an “astonishing” decision, and said the case posed a threat to freedom of speech on the Internet.

Prosecutors said the case was not about censorship, but about balancing freedom of expression with the rights of an individual. They said the video remained online for months even though some web users had posted comments asking that it be taken down. Google said it removed the video within hours of being notified by police.

The three defendants received six-month suspended sentences for privacy violation. They were acquitted of charges of defamation, as was a fourth executive. All had denied wrongdoing. In an earlier action in juvenile court, the four bullies were sentenced to community service.

From the Detroit News:

Disability rights advocates are threatening to file federal ADA complaints over Detroit’s para-transit service, saying they regularly encounter unkempt and poorly equipped vans and rude drivers who engage in reckless driving, don’t show up at the appointed time and place, and drop clients at the wrong addresses.

The complaints come as the city is engaged in an ongoing contract dispute with its para-transit provider, prompting city officials to hire taxicabs and van services while attempting to resolve the dispute. Veolia Transportation has sued the city in federal court for breach of contract and a claim of $5.4 million.

City officials charge that Veolia is fanning complaints against the city in an attempt to win speedy resolution of its claims.

From the Oakland [CA] Tribune:

The city of Oakland, California, has reached an agreement with disability advocates to settle a 2007 lawsuit that charged the city had not made adequate plans to assist people with disabilities in the event of an earthquake or other disaster. The city has promised to make improvements in its emergency preparedness plans.

“This is a victory for people with disabilities in Oakland,” said Karla Gilbride, an attorney for Disability Rights Advocates of Berkeley, the organization that brought the lawsuit. “Oakland has shown itself to be a leader in making sure people will be equally safe … and we’re hoping other cities will follow Oakland’s lead.”

A similar lawsuit filed by Disability Rights Advocates and another organization is pending against the city of Los Angeles.

San Diego Chargers owner will retrofit thousands of rental properties

From the San Diego Union-Tribune, AP/ABC, Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

In what is being called the largest disabled-access settlement in the housing industry, [San Diego] Chargers owner Alex Spanos’ development company will spend more than $12 million to retrofit thousands of apartment units found to be out of compliance with fair housing laws governing accessibility.

The settlement covers 15,500 units in 123 apartment properties in 11 states, and stems from a lawsuit filed by the National Fair Housing Alliance against the A.G. Spanos Cos., which is run by Spanos’ sons Michael and Dean Spanos.

In announcing the settlement, the National Fair Housing Alliance praised the developer for crafting a settlement that went beyond the letter of the law.

“It’s unusual for me to praise defendants in a case,” said Shanna Smith, president of the alliance … “This is a landmark, unique, comprehensive settlement.”

From Bloomberg/Business Week, AP/MSNBC, PC World, AP/ABC News:

Three universities say they will stop promoting the use of Amazon.com’s Kindle DX e-book reader in classrooms in the wake of legal complaints that the device doesn’t allow students with disabilities equal access to information.

The Department of Justice announced settlements involving Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Pace University in New York City and Reed College in Portland, Oregon. The schools were among six that had participated in a pilot program testing the use of the device in the classroom.

Earlier in the week, Arizona State University, announced it had settled a lawsuit with disability rights organizations challenging its participation in the Kindle pilot program. Advocates had alleged that the device’s inaccessibility constituted a violation of federal law. Arizona State denied that its pilot program violated any law, but said that “it will strive to use devices that are accessible to the blind” if it does decide to use e-book readers in the future.

Three other schools announced last year that they will not use Kindle in the classroom.

Amazon has said it is working to improve the device’s accessibility with audible menus and extra-large type.