DRNM filed the Jackson lawsuit in 1987 to help people with intellectual and developmental disabilities who were institutionalized in state facilities in Los Lunas and Fort Stanton. After a long trial we were able to convince the federal court that the residents deserved better treatment. Eventually the State realized that it could not provide legally adequate treatment within the institutions. By 1997 the institutions had closed and New Mexico fully committed to a comprehensive community-based system without discrimination for everyone who qualified for the Developmental Disabilities Waiver. The parties spent the next 25 years in the struggle to improve this community-based system. On April 29, 2022 the court finally dismissed the case. While we were unable to achieve all the outcomes we hoped to see implemented for the class members, this case was a remarkable success for some of New Mexico’s most vulnerable citizens, and the impact of the Jackson lawsuit will live far beyond the 35 years the case remained active.
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