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News Specialist Jill Atwood reporting
Utah's Disability Law Center represents people who can't represent themselves. And recently, it has taken that responsibility to a new level by filing a class action lawsuit against the State of Utah.
The suit alleges that for the past decade or more, the state has repeatedly ignored an ever-growing waiting list for services.
The law center filed on behalf of nine plaintiffs who represent a full range of disabilities and different needs. The center argues some people have waited up to 10 years for just basic services that could make a big difference in their lives.
Sharon Neilson hopes someday that her 16-year-old son Matt will be able to leave his video game fantasy land and live in the real world.
Matt is autistic, and in need of special schooling and guidance.
At the same time, as Matt's sole caretaker, his mom is in need of a break.
"He demands 90 percent of your time, and when you have more than one child, you need 90 percent times three," Neilson says.
Matt is eligible for state services. The problem is, there are more than 1,300 people on a waiting list, and Matt is one of them. He's been waiting for more than three years now.
"His social skills go down and down and down. Right now he does not fit into the world," Neilson says. Sharon Neilson
"If he had more direction other than school, other than what's at home, maybe he wouldn't get so angry," she says.
Fraser Nelson is the executive director of the Disability Law Center. She says quite simply, their patience has run out, and that the state is in violation of the Americans with Disability's Act.
"One of our plaintiffs is a young man who with just a few hours of job coaching could be a tax-paying citizen. Instead, the state's saying to him 'well, we'd rather be in an institution. That's really your only option,'" Nelson says.
The center realizes a solution can't happen overnight. They just want a plan put in motion.
"You know Utah is good at planning when it comes to roads. If we want something, we can figure out a way to get there, whether it's the Olympics or a new highway system. But when it comes to human needs, we're not interested in making that kind of plan," Nelson says.
Three separate state agencies are named in the lawsuit.
None of the agencies could respond today to the allegations in the suit.
The lawsuit asks that the agencies be forced to come up with a plan to solve the problems -- but much of the problem is the result of budget cutting over several years, and the budget isn't any healthier this year.
