Suspended Sentences Poll

After reading about a Korean Judge giving suspended sentences to four men who raped a sixteen-year-old relative who had a developmental disability. Please consider registering your opinion below. Please be sure to read about this story before registering your opinion (November 24 report & December 3 report).

As of December 13, 2008, 16,839 people joined the original Korean internet petition! 

Guilty plea in torture case

28 November 2008 – Dakota County, MN, USA According to the Pioneer Press, Natasha Dahn, 16, plead guilty to two-counts of kidnapping, third degree assault, and aggravated burglary, in connection with the torture of Justin Hamilton, 24, who has a developmental disability.

Neglect Charges following Death

4 November 2008 – Calais, VT, USA Another caregiver has been charged in the death of a vulnerable person with disabilities under her care.

Celebrity or Accomplice?

19 October 2008 – United Kingdom Daniel Jones writes human interest stories for The People. Some of the people he writes about are heroes or celebrities, some are ordinary people who do extraordinary things. Today’s story is about Mary Wragg, a 44-year-old woman who “has found love again with her childhood sweetheart” and moved in with him in Middleton-on-Sea, West Sussex. … But what makes Mary Wragg a celebrity worthy of readers attention.

Who killed Erianna Beltran?

16 October 2008 – Fresno, CA, USA Prosecutors announced that charges were dropped against a 19-year-old Fresno man previously charged with murder and felony child abuse charges of his girlfriend’s 3-year old daughter who had autism. Mack Lucas was released from jail on the day of his scheduled preliminary hearing. Erianna Beltran died eight months earlier on January 27th as a result of blunt-force trauma.

Minnesota Torture of a Vulnerable Adult

15 October 2008 – Dakota County, MN, USA Four men have been arrested in connection with allegations of two days of torture of 24-year-old man with mental disabilities and fetal alcohol syndrome. Allegations suggest that the victim was lured from his home and taken to a remote Dakota County location where he was “savagely beaten,” burned with cigarette lighters, tied to a motorcycle and dragged or 200 feet, and left unconscious.

Abuse of Women with Physical Disabilities

Abuse of women with disabilities by Morris, Rusty Lee, Ph.D., Union Institute and University, 2004, 174 pages; ProQuest Dissertation and Thesis Number AAT 3146434

Autism: Recent toll of violence

Children and adults with autism are identified as alleged victims in a number of recent cases of abuse and violence. Sadly, the cases listed here are only a a sample of some of the recent news reports:

Child Welfare Horrors

New York, NY Two recent cases have pointed to major  problems in New York’s Child Welfare System. A New York Times Story of 1 August 2008 reports that  Lethem Duncan, 62, plead guilty to embezzling large sums of money intended for children with special needs:

Caregiver theft

Here are some recent stories on caregiver theft:

Bus Driver Sentenced

28 August 2008 Hollywood, FL Broward County School entered a plea agreement almost a year after he was videotaped striking two students who had severe disabilities with a metal Jack handle.

Dateline Serbia: Part 2

The Dateline NBC show on institutions fro people with developmental disabilities and mental health conditions  in Serbia can be viewed on the we. It is an excellent show. There are also some interesting text

Police Officers & Disability

Modell, S.J. & Mak, S.(2008). A preliminary assessment of police officers’ knowledge and perceptions of persons with disabilities. Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, 46(3), 183-189.

Wallace case settled

July 2007 – St. Louis As reported by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the State of Missouri settled a suit brought against it by the family of Rutherford “Rudy” Wallace. The agreement, which  calls for a payment of $665,000, was approved in Federal Court. Harris died in 2006 after being scaled in a hot bath. Attempts to cover up the scalding resulted in delayed treatment and quashed any chance of saving Wallace’s life. The death was ruled a homicide.

MDRI-Deaths and Abuse in Paraguay

MDRI  Exposes Deaths and Abuse in Paraguayan Psychiatric  Hospital and Demands Immediate Government  Action (This report is authored and forwarded by MDRI)