Disabled Students Sue State

A group of developmentally disabled residents have filed a class-action suit against the state, demanding they be allowed to live in community homes rather than institutions.

Plaintiffs filed the suit yesterday in Alameda County Superior Court and hope to represent more than 6-thousand Californians with developmental disabilities.

They say thousands of Californians are isolated and unhappy in institutions. They claim state officials are violating the Americans with Disabilities Act by preventing them from living within their own communities.

The suit names the state Department of Developmental Services as a defendant. Also named are 21 private nonprofit agencies known as regional centers that contract with the state to provide care for the disabled.

The state has not yet commented on the suit.