ORLANDO, Fla. – A civil lawsuit has been filed by the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida against SeaWorld’s parent company, United Parks & Recreation INC. (UPR), over their wheeled walker ban.
The lawsuit alleges the policy, banning guests with disabilities from using wheeled walkers with seats, including rollators, violates the Americans with Disabilities Act.
UPR banned the walkers from its parks, including SeaWorld Orlando and Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, because of “misuse and safety-related incidents,” and because of the parks’ varying pathways and terrain, the company said last year. The company said the wheeled walkers and seats were being inappropriately used as wheelchairs.
[WATCH: Justice Department probes SeaWorld, Busch Gardens over disability discrimination claims]
After complaints, SeaWorld said guests who came with a non-permitted device could get approved alternatives, including rollators without seats and wheelchairs, at no cost to them.
“The ADA requires equal access for people with disabilities, and theme parks such as SeaWorld are no exception,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Under my leadership, the Division is committed to defending the rights of all Americans with disabilities, as the law requires.”
U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe for the Middle District of Florida said all guests, regardless of ability, must have equal access.
Officials say the lawsuit was filed after complaints against the company from many people with disabilities.
It comes after a probe by the Justice Department over the same issue last year.
The lawsuit seeks a court order to force UPR to stop discriminating against individuals with disabilities, to modify its policies to comply with the ADA, and to train its staff on the ADA.
The lawsuit also lays out monetary penalties.
[READ the Justice Department’s lawsuit]