Movie Theaters Must Offer Stadium Seating To Wheelchair Users, Judge Orders
BOSTON, April 7, 2003 -- A federal judge has ordered two large movie theater chains to offer seating in the more desirable "stadium" sections to people who use wheelchairs, the Associated Press reports.
Judge William G. Young ruled that National Amusements Inc. and Hoyts Cinemas Corp. violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by making wheelchair users sit in the lower seating areas or in aisles on the edge of the more popular stadium-style seats. Young said this was discriminatory because it provided "an inferior angle to the stadium seats."