LexLive reaches settlement after disabled veteran was asked to leave over service animal
The owners and operators of Lexington entertainment center LexLive have reached a settlement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office after a disabled veteran accused the venue of forcing them to leave because they had a service animal with them.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Kentucky announced Monday it reached a settlement with Big Picture Ventures, the owner and operator of LexLive, an entertainment center downtown with a restaurant, movie theater, bowling alley and arcade. The U.S. Attorney’s office received a complaint from the veteran, stating the venue violated the Americans with Disabilities Act when a manager at LexLive’s Corner Bar forced the woman and others to leave the bar because she was accompanied by her service animal.
The incident happened in December 2022, according to a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The agreed settlement requires LexLive to adopt and implement a service animal policy, provide training on the service animal policy to employees and managers, post the policy in public areas, pay $1,000 in damages to the veteran, and pay a $500 civil penalty to the United States, according to the Department of Justice.
Representatives of Big Venture Pictures and LexLive were not immediately available for comment Wednesday morning.
LexLive cooperated throughout the investigation, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
“Under the ADA, restaurants and bars, as public accommodations, are required to ensure proper access to their customers with disabilities,” Carlton S. Shier, IV, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, said in a news release. “This includes allowing service dogs, which are a necessary means for many with disabilities. We remain committed to ensuring that individuals with disabilities have proper access under the ADA, and we are pleased that LexLive has agreed to modify its policies and practices to comply with the Act.”
Under federal law, private entities that own or operate places of “public accommodation,” including restaurants and bars, are required to modify their policies, practices, or procedures—such as a no pet policy—to permit the use of a service animal by an individual with a disability. A service animal generally may go wherever the public is allowed, and a public accommodation may not require documentation about the service animal.
This story was originally published November 29, 2023 at 2:01 PM.
