Robert L. Carpenter v. Department of Transportation Samuel K. Skinner, Secretary of the Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration, Robert L. Carpenter, Plaintiff-Petitioner v. Department of Transportation, Defendants-Respondents

13 F.3d 313 63 Empl. Prac. Dec. P 42,808 , 2 A.D. Cases 1587, 3 ADD 768, 4 NDLR P 320 Robert L. CARPENTER, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION; Samuel K. Skinner, Secretary of the Department of Transportation; Federal Highway Administration, et al., Defendants-Appellees. Robert L. CARPENTER, Plaintiff-Petitioner, v. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, et al., Defendants-Respondents. Nos. 92-15943, 92-70253. United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. Argued and Submitted Oct. 7, 1993. Decided Jan. 3, 1994. Linda D. Kilb, Disability Rights Educ. and Defense Fund, Inc., Berkeley, CA, for plaintiff-appellant-petitioner. Robert Zener, Dept. of Justice, Washington, DC, for defendants-respondents-appellees. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. Petition for Review of a Decision of the Department of Transportation. Before: TANG, TROTT and FERNANDEZ, Circuit Judges. TROTT, Circuit Judge: 1 The central question in this case is whether a Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) safety regulation can be challenged in district court under Sec. 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. Sec. 794 , or whether the Hobbs Act, 28 U.S.C.…