A woman is suing Waterfront Concerts, alleging she was told she wasn’t allowed to stand for a concert because she was in a section for people with disabilities.
Lisa Caldeira and her husband attended a Phish concert in July 2022 at the Maine Savings Amphitheater. During the concert, the venue discriminated against Caldeira by enforcing policies that didn’t apply to non-disabled patrons, according to the lawsuit filed Wednesday in Penobscot County Superior Court.
The lawsuit alleges Waterfront Concerts violated the Maine Human Rights Act and the Maine Civil Rights Act by discriminating against Caldeira, who has multiple sclerosis and degenerative disc disorder. She was using an ankle boot and a knee scooter at the time of the concert.
The venue also violated the Americans with Disabilities Act, by discriminating against Caldeira, according to the lawsuit. It also says the city of Bangor violated the act because it owns the amphitheater and failed to provide equal access to Caldeira, who is disabled.
The city has not been served the lawsuit and does not comment on pending litigation, spokesperson David Warren said. A lawyer for Waterfront Concerts did not respond to a request for comment.
Caldeira asked a judge, in part, to award her damages for the “willful and malicious misconduct” and force Waterfront Concerts and the city to stop practices that discriminate against people who are disabled and train employees about illegal disability discrimination.
The Maine Human Rights Commission found there were “reasonable grounds” to believe Caldeira was discriminated against and the mediation process between Caldeira and Waterfront Concerts did not resolve the case. The commission said Caldeira had the right to file a civil lawsuit.
The Caldeiras seats were on a concrete pad with a railing in front, according to the lawsuit. It said she stood to cheer when Phish took the stage, as did most other people at the concert. A volunteer at the venue then told her she must sit in her seat, according to the lawsuit.
That volunteer told other people in the ADA section to sit down, which some people did. Others left the section but Caldeira continued standing, the lawsuit said.
Waterfront Concerts said in a filing to the commission that the front ADA section is “typically reserved for mobility restricted ADA customers,” and companions, according to the lawsuit. The venue also said it’s “generally for ADA customers that, unfortunately, cannot stand.”
Caldeira wanted to stand and dance with the support of the rail in front of her seat and asked the volunteer to leave her alone, the lawsuit said. It said she told the volunteer that forcing her to sit was a violation of her rights and was illegal.
The volunteer got a manager, Joanne Higgins, who then told Caldeira that standing is not permitted under the venue policy, the lawsuit said. Caldeira again said she was permitted to stand because other people outside of the ADA section were allowed to, according to the lawsuit.
Higgins told Caldeira she would be removed from the venue if she did not sit, the lawsuit said. A security guard then came to the section and told Caldeira she would be “physically removed” if she stood, according to the lawsuit.
People in the VIP section invited Caldeira to their area but the security guard said she was not allowed in there, the lawsuit said. The man did say Caldeira could go into the general admission standing room, but that would be dangerous to her physical well-being because of her disabilities, the lawsuit said.
Two more security guards arrived and “crowded around” Caldeira, ordering her to sit, escalating to the head security guard yelling in her face that “I’m a disabled person too,” the lawsuit said.
At that point Caldeira was scared of being hit by the guard and another man “who appeared to be in charge” stepped between her and the guard who was yelling, according to the lawsuit.
Caldeira asked if she would be physically removed from the venue if she did not sit down, which security confirmed, the lawsuit said. She was shaking with fear and was experiencing severe emotional distress, the lawsuit said.
Eventually security moved to a nearby area and “glared at Ms. Caldeira where they continued to intimidate and scare her,” according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit does not say if Caldeira continued standing.
Caldeira wants to attend more concerts in the future but is deterred because of the discrimination and retaliation she dealt with at the Phish concert, the lawsuit said.