ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A local woman said she was kicked out of a St. Petersburg Restaurant last week for having a service dog.
"I got in my car and I started crying. I was very upset," said Emily Barrett.
Barrett, who has cerebral palsy, has worked with her service dog Flo since March.
"With my cerebral palsy, which affects my legs, my legs are weak so I'm not able to bend down to pick something up if I drop it into the floor," she explained. "She can pick up anything, basically. She can pick up metal, plastic, paper plastic."
Flo also assists with her balance and helps her walk, which means wherever Emily goes, Flo goes.
Last week, that included El Cap Restaurant in St. Petersburg.
Barrett said she was shocked when she was told she could not eat there because of her service dog.
"I sat down and a minute or so later another server came out and she tells me, 'You need to leave. No dogs are allowed in the restaurant,' and I explained to her this is a service dog, she needs to be with me, and she said that even including service dogs are not allowed in the restaurant," said Barrett.
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, any public place a person with a disability may go, their service animal may legally go too, including restaurants.
The owner of El Cap, who did not want to go on camera, told 10 Tampa Bay that she was not at the restaurant last week when the incident occurred and did not want to speak to the specifics of what happened. She emphasized that they do allow service dogs. She later followed up with 10 Tampa Bay to say El Cap is committed to re-educating its staff about what to do when people bring in service dogs to ensure a situation like this never happens again.
Barb Page, a senior advocate for Disability Rights Florida said, "If it's not obvious [why a service dog is needed], a restaurant owner can ask, is this a service dog for a disability? And what kind of services does it do for you?"
Page said while businesses have the right to ask those questions, they do not have the legal right to ask what your disability is or for you to provide documentation for your animal.
"Under the ADA, there is no certification of requirement for professional training," explained Page. "There's a common misconception that service animals must wear vests and that is not the case. In fact, many service animals don't wear vests, particularly in Florida because of the excessive heat."
Disability Rights Florida has outlined exactly what the rights are of those who use service dogs. For that information, click here.
Meanwhile, Barrett hopes her experience can serve as a learning opportunity.
"I don't want this to happen to someone else. If this can prevent the next person from ruining someone else's day, I'd like to prevent that from happening."