News Notes: Court Says Reporter Who Couldn’t Type Was Not Disabled

Jacalyn Thornton, a part-time reporter for the Fresno Bee newspaper, spent about one-third of her time working at a computer keyboard. After she developed a repetitive stress disorder and became unable to use a keyboard, the paper terminated her. She sued, contending that her discharge violated the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has now ruled that Thornton was not substantially limited in the major activity of working because her inability to type did not preclude her from performing other jobs, such as teaching or freelance reporting. But the trial court will now have to determine whether the state disability bias law, which requires a worker to show only some limitation in a major life activity, applies to Thornton’s case.