Paraplegic Coach Barred From Field Files Rights Claim

A baseball coach for Westminster High School who is a paraplegic has filed a civil rights lawsuit against state and local athletic organizations that he says have barred him from bringing his wheelchair onto the playing field.

Victor Barrios, 26, has been a third-base coach for the Westminster Lions freshman team for the past four years. Shortly after the beginning of this season, umpires told him his wheelchair posed a hazard to himself and to the players, and banned him from the field.

The suit, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles on Barrios’ behalf by the Center for Law in the Public Interest and the Western Law Center for Disability Rights, seeks an injunction against the California Interscholastic Federation. Also named in the suit are federation’s southern office and the Orange County Baseball Officials Assn., an umpires organization.

The suit seeks unspecified monetary damages from the agencies.

Barrios has been barred from seven of 12 games this year and said the action has taken a heavy emotional toll on him.

A junior at Cal State Fullerton majoring in physical education, Barrios said his grades have slipped and he now worries about whether it is feasible for him to pursue a career in sports and fitness.

“This is mentally draining--now I’m unsure if I’m actually in the right field,” he said. “Who’s to say that when I’m done with school it won’t be still up in the air whether I can do this for a living?”

Barrios said he does not know why officials decided he could not coach on the field after allowing his presence for so long.

Reached late in the day, Frank Lerner, who assigns umpires for the baseball officials association, declined to comment on the suit and referred calls to the CIF. But the federation offices were closed and officials could not be reached for comment.

But in the past, Lerner said the association is primarily concerned for Barrios’ safety but also worries about liability should he suffer an injury on the field.

Earlier in the season, it seemed that Barrios and the umpires might reach an accord.

Barrios said he was told he would be allowed to coach if he obtained a written clearance from the CIF.

In March he was sure the clearance was on the way, but it never materialized.

On Wednesday, he watched the Lions get routed, 14-1, by the Ocean View freshman team and arrived home steaming at his inability to help the boys.

“I filed suit because I wasn’t getting any answers and I didn’t want to continue this,” he said. “People need to open their eyes and realize not everyone in a wheelchair is unable to perform.”

Jilana Miller, an attorney for the Center for the Center for Law in the Public Interest, said barring Barrios from the playing field is a clear violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Policy restriction such as the one keeping him off the field cannot be blanket limits but must be based on an assessment of an individual’s performance, she said.

“What we have in this case is the assumption that Coach Barrios would not be able to move out of the way if a foul ball were hit over the third base line and the third baseman were coming to catch the ball,” Miller said.

Since no such instance has occurred, there are no grounds for the assumption, she said.

“But also, Coach Barrios is an adult. This is his career choice and what he wants to do with his life.”

A hearing is scheduled for 2 p.m. Friday in federal court to determine whether the federation and the association will be required to let Barrios coach for the rest of the season.