In accordance with the requirements of title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (“ADA”), the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) will not discriminate against qualified individuals with disabilities on the basis of disability in its services, programs, or activities.
Employment: SLED does not discriminate on the basis of disability in its hiring or employment practices and complies with all regulations promulgated by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission under title I of the ADA.
Effective Communication: SLED will generally, upon request, provide appropriate aids and services leading to effective communication for qualified persons with disabilities so they can participate equally in SLED programs, services, and activities, including qualified sign language interpreters, documents in Braille, and other ways of making information and communications accessible to people who have speech, hearing, or vision impairments.
Modifications to Policies and Procedures: SLED will make all reasonable modifications to policies and programs to ensure that people with disabilities have an equal opportunity to enjoy all of its programs, services, and activities. For example, individuals with service animals are welcomed in SLED offices, even where pets are generally prohibited.
Anyone who requires an auxiliary aid or service for effective communication, or a modification of policies or procedures to participate in a program, service, or activity of SLED, should contact Paul Ahearn, ADA Coordinator, as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours before the scheduled event at 803-737-9000.
The ADA does not require SLED to take any action that would fundamentally alter the nature of its programs or services, or impose an undue financial or administrative burden.
Complaints alleging discrimination on the basis of disability in the provision of services, activities, programs, or benefits by SLED should be directed to Paul Ahearn, ADA Coordinator. The complaint should be in writing and contain information about the alleged discrimination such as name, address, phone number of complainant and location, date, and description of the problem. Alternative means of filing complaints, such as personal interviews or a tape recording of the complaint will be made available for persons with disabilities upon request.
The complaint should be submitted by the grievant and/or his/her designee as soon as possible but no later than 60 calendar days after the alleged violation to:
Paul Ahearn
ADA Coordinator
South Carolina Law Enforcement Division
P.O. Box 21398
Columbia, SC 29221-1398
Within 15 calendar days after receipt of the complaint, the ADA Coordinator or his/her designee will contact the complainant to discuss the complaint and the possible resolutions. Within 15 calendar days of the meeting, the ADA Coordinator or his/her designee will respond in writing, and where appropriate, in a format accessible to the complainant. The response will explain the position of SLED and offer options for substantive resolution of the complaint if available.
If the response by the ADA Coordinator or his/her designee does not satisfactorily resolve the issue, the complainant and/or his/her designee may appeal the decision within 15 calendar days after receipt of the response to the SLED’s General Counsel or his/her designee.
Within 15 calendar days after receipt of the appeal, SLED’s General Counsel or his/her designee will contact the complainant to discuss the complaint and possible resolutions. Within 15 calendar days after the meeting, SLED’s General Counsel or his/her designee will respond in writing, and, where appropriate, in a format accessible to the complainant, with a final resolution of the complaint.
All written complaints received by the ADA Coordinator and appeals to SLED’s General Counsel or his/her designee, and responses from these two officers will be retained by SLED for at least three years.