Blind man who was told to read library sign cleared to fight San Francisco

(CN) — Anthony Lewis lives in San Francisco. He enjoys spending time at the main branch of the San Francisco Public Library, visiting the Talking Books section and Braille Center.

He’s also blind and uses a service dog to help him navigate the city. He took the dog with him on a visit to the library this past April, when he encountered a security guard at the main entrance who demanded to see the dog’s rabies vaccination record.

Taken aback since he’d never been asked for the record before, Lewis questioned the policy.

“Look on the wall,” the security guard said, according to Lewis, who says it’s obvious that he’s blind. “It’s been there for a year and a half.”

Lewis filed a complaint with the San Francisco Office on Disability and Accessibility, asking the library to dump its “discriminatory and illegal policy of requiring proof of vaccination for service dogs.” The office informed Lewis the policy was citywide and compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, prompting Lewis to sue the city.

On Monday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph Spero declined to dismiss Lewis’ discrimination claims.

Under federal regulations, public entities can’t require documentation for service animals. San Francisco argued the regulation should be read narrowly to limit only questions of whether an animal qualifies as a service animal, but Spero noted the regulation can be read more broadly.

“The court need not decide how broadly the agency intended this prohibition to be read, however, as the Ninth Circuit has recognized that in general, ‘requiring individuals with disabilities to carry around documentation may be ‘unnecessary, burdensome, and contrary to the spirit, intent, and mandates of the ADA,’" Spero wrote.

San Francisco said the library’s policy treats Lewis more favorably than nondisabled people, who are generally not allowed to bring animals into the library, regardless of whether they show proof of vaccination.

It also argued the fact that Lewis was ultimately allowed inside the library undermined his argument that the city discriminated against him. Lewis said the policy calls attention to his disabled status and imposes an undue burden on him.

Spero found the crux of the claim comes down to how state and local public health rules align with the requirements of Title II and the Rehabilitation Act.

“The enactment of these state and local laws do not allow the court to draw any conclusions as to whether the manner in which those laws are enforced by the city and county of San Francisco may run afoul of the ADA and the Rehabilitation Act,” Spero wrote.

Lewis asked the library to excuse him from the vaccination record requirement, which the city opposed, arguing that it was unreasonable and unnecessary because it was not related to his disability. Spero again disagreed.

“The documentation policy at issue here applies almost exclusively to individuals who seek to access library services by using a service animal; in other words, it is because of Lewis’s status as a disabled person that he must comply with this policy,” Spero wrote.

San Francisco declined to comment and Lewis’ attorney did not respond to a request for comment by press time.