Constitutional Law Keyed to Cohen
Pennhurst State School & Hospital v. Halderman
Facts
This case is before the Supreme Court for a second time to determine whether a federal court can grant relief against state officials based on state law. The case concerns the condition of care at Petitioners’ institution for the mentally retarded. The Respondents’ amended complaint charged that the Petitioners violated class member’s rights under (i) the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments of the Constitution, (ii) Section:504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, (iii) the Developmentally Disabled Assistance and Bill of Rights Act and (iv) the Pennsylvania Mental Health and Mental Retardation Act of 1966. The Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit decided that the Respondents had a right to rehabilitation in the least restrictive environment, based solely on the bill of rights provision in the Developmentally Disabled Assistance and Bill of Rights Act. The Supreme Court of the United States (Supreme Court) reversed the judgment of the Court of Appeals finding that the Developmentally Dis abled Assistance and Bill of Rights Act did not create any substantive rights and remanded the case back to the Court of Appeals to determine if the remedial order could be supported by any of the Respondents’ other arguments. The Court of Appeals concluded that state law supported its prior judgment and also rejected the Petitioners’ argument that the Eleventh Amendment barred the federal court from considering the pendent state law claim. The case goes before the Supreme Court to consider the Petitioners’ position.
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