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Get Steamed Over Boyle!

(Feb. 24, 2005)-We need your help to defend the rights of Americans with mental and physical disabilities.

On Thursday, March 3rd, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold hearings on the confirmation of Terrence Boyle, a judicial nominee with a record of ruling against civil rights protections for people with disabilities. If confirmed, this judicial activist would have a lifetime appointment to undermine laws protecting tens of millions of Americans with disabilities.

Boyle is a nominee to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland). He has ruled that Congress overstepped its authority in providing certain protections to people with disabilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). His reasoning in these decisions was rejected last May by the Supreme Court's decision in Tennessee v. Lane. An extraordinary number of Boyle's decisions have been reversed or overruled by higher courts.

Boyle has also interpreted the ADA as providing only limited protections, taking a position so extreme that even judges on the conservative Fourth Circuit criticized his reading as too narrow.

Terrence Boyle has a long record of ruling against civil rights protections for people with disabilities. Help us make sure that he can't extend that record with a lifetime appointment to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Terrence Boyle's Record on Disability Rights Support the Bazelon Center. Your tax-deductible donation helps the Bazelon Center keep you informed on important developments in mental health law and policy. Not a Subscriber? Sign up now to receive action alerts and updates from the Bazelon Center. Syndicate Our Alerts. With our new RSS (Real Simple Syndication) feeds, you can receive instant notification of new alerts, updates, news releases and publications on our website. If you have your own website, you can also automatically post links to new resources from the Bazelon Center on your website. Find out more...

Take action Now

Show members of the Senate Judiciary Committee that people with disabilities oppose Terrence Boyle's confirmation! If you can, please attend next Thursday's hearing to demonstrate the strength of opposition to Boyle's confirmation.

When: Thursday, March 3 (2:00 PM)

Where: Room 226 of the Senate Dirksen Office Building*

*Room subject to change

If you can't attend the hearing, please contact the Senators below to let them know that you oppose the confirmation of Terrence Boyle to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals:

Senator Arlen Specter, Chairman (R-PA): 202-224-4254

Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT): 202-224-5251

Senator Charles E. Grassley (R-IA): 202-224-3744

Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ): 202-224-4521

Senator Mike DeWine (R-OH): 202-224-2315

Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL): 202-224-4124

Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC): 202-224-5972

Senator John Cornyn (R-TX): 202-224-2934

Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS): 202- 224-6521

Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK): 202-224-5754

Senator Patrick Leahy, Ranking Democratic Member (D-VT):
202-224-4242

Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA): 202-224-4543

Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-DE): 202-224-5042

Senator Herbert Kohl (D-WI): 202-224-5653

Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA): 202-224-3841

Senator Russell D. Feingold (D-WI): 202-224-5323

Senator Charles E. Schumer (D-NY): 202-224-0420

Senator Richard J. Durbin (D-IL): 202-224-2152

Contact the Committee: 202-224-5225

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