Hightower v. Ledbetter, circa 1995-1998
General Description: Forced Medication
Summary of the Issues Involved: A group of patients at a state-operated mental health facility filed this class action challenging the unlawful administration of psychotropic medications without consent. Under Georgia law, mental health facilities were permitted to administer medications without consent when physicians concluded that refusal would be unsafe to the patient and others. The district court upheld the state policy, finding that the forced medication did not violate plaintiffs’ substantive and procedural due process rights. The case was also known as Hightower v. Olmstead.
Sierra Club v. Georgia Department of Transportation
General Description: City Planning and Access to Transportation
Summary of the Issues Involved: The ACLU of Georgia brought this case on behalf of plaintiffs challenging the Atlanta Regional Transportation Plan on the grounds that it failed to take into consideration the transportation needs of minorities, the elderly, and those living with disabilities.
Straight, Inc. Treatment Procedures and Services
General Description: Substance Abuse Treatment Center Abuse
Summary of the Issues Involved: The ACLU of Georgia filed a lawsuit and launched an investigation on behalf of the plaintiff, a woman allegedly held against her will and abused at Straight, Inc. The lawsuit argued the Marietta, Georgia-based treatment facility violated the fundamental rights of its patients by engaging in such practices.
