LJWorld.com / Service dog barred from restaurant

Archive for Tuesday, May 21, 2002

The Associated Press

May 21, 2002

KANSAS CITY, KAN. — A barbecue restaurant made famous by then-future President Clinton during a 1992 campaign stop is in the news again for refusing to admit a service dog that belongs to a man in a wheelchair.

James Bailes, who has been paralyzed for 28 years, has filed a complaint with the state's human rights commission saying that he was told he could not bring his yellow Labrador, Midas, into Ricky's Pit BarBQue.

Owner Ricky Smith told the Kansas City Kansan that the dog would be a health hazard and that he would lose customers if he allowed the dog in.

But state officials say service dogs are supposed to be allowed just like seeing-eye dogs.

Midas answers his owner's phone, picks up things he drops, and helps him get up if he falls out of his wheelchair. Bailes said Midas has been a regular companion at other restaurants.

But when Bailes took Midas with him to Ricky's late last year, he was told the dog had to stay in the van even after Bailes pulled out his wallet and read the relevant section of the Americans with Disabilities Act to the restaurant's managers.

Bailes said managers told him the dog would have been allowed if he were a seeing-eye dog.

That shouldn't make any difference, said Anthony Fadale, the Kansas coordinator for the Americans with Disabilities Act.

In general, he said, service animals must be allowed into public areas of accommodation, including restaurants and shopping centers.

Smith was adamant about letting a service dog inside his restaurant.

"I worked 18 years to build this business up, and I'm not going to let one man come in and destroy it," he said. He also said he would lose customers if he allowed a dog in the restaurant.

"This is a black restaurant, and black people don't eat with dogs," he said.

Smith also said he was concerned about health regulations.

Health regulations have been a concern at Ricky's before. In 1997, inspectors found evidence of live cockroaches, rodent droppings and food being kept at improper temperatures, and fined the restaurant $1,500.

Clinton visited Ricky's Pit during his 1992 campaign. The restaurant later catered several presidential functions.