Jonathan Carey was developmentally disabled and had autism and only 13 when he was killed by his caregivers, Jonathan was illegally restrained

DELMAR, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES, October 14, 2016 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Jonathan’s crime or offense was that he unbuckled his seat belt in a parked van. The New York State employed caregiver who was Jonathan’s one to one aide and who was to be in arms length of Jonathan to assist him and protect him left him for over twenty minutes to do a personal banking errand. The other NYS caregiver in the van, who had worked 197.5 hours within the two weeks, immediately put Jonathan into an illegal physical restraint restricting his breathing. Jonathan is my son and Jonathan should never have been restrained in any way. Jonathan was the most loving person that I have ever met and you should get to know him and some of the horrific things he endured. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/06/nyregion/boys-death-highlights-crisis-in-homes-for-disabled.html - http://www.nytimes.com/video/nyregion/100000000849083/a-failure-to-protect.html
When the caregiver that physically killed Jonathan realized that Jonathan was in severe distress and his eyes were fluttering, he then released Jonathan briefly before sitting on his head and chest until he killed Jonathan. There was no 911 call; no attempt to revive Jonathan, Jonathan was suffocated to death. I must bring this to the forefront because extremely large number of children and adults with disabilities are being restrained for no reason and many are dying all across our country https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gf4JxtSRygY. In many cases restraints are not only abusive they would be considered a felony criminal offense. The problems are when facilities, schools and group homes have little to no oversight and when many of their staff think they can do whatever they want with a disabled person very serious problems can arise. What should be happening is that our most vulnerable disabled are provided the very best and safest for care and services. Almost always even big issues such as emotional melt downs can be handled in a much better and safer way than one or more caregivers or teachers physically laying their hands on the person with a disability or sitting on top of them. Only imagine if this was you, it almost always will escalate the problems and make the situation far worse. I remember a young man that was disabled who was also clearly emotionally damaged at the facility where Jonathan lived at the time called OD Heck Developmental Center. All this young man needed was to be treated well, spoken to calmly and respectfully and loved. I remember seeing tremendous changes with him while on visits to see Jonathan. I simply would acknowledge him and treat him special, giving him a piece of candy and a hug. In a manner of a short time he would run over to me looking forward to my hug when I arrived.
Tragically, the New York State agency supposedly in place to protect the disabled from abuse according to their vision is doing the exact opposite. The former Commission on Quality of Care now called the Justice Center has a history of covering up abuse, neglect, crimes and deaths. This entity was exposed and renamed and relocated to give an appearance of reform following an award winning NY Times “Abused & Used” investigative reporting series http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/nyregion/abused-and-used-series-page.html?_r=0 . This investigative reporting series which was a runner up for a Pulitzer Prize revealed that New York States mental health care system is a disaster, extremely dangerous and deadly and to date it remains so http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/10/opinion/protecting-the-most-vulnerable.html. Now under the new name and guise of a Justice Center thousands of crimes which include criminally negligent deaths are being covered-up regularly. Restraint deaths are just one of the many reasons so many young people with disabilities are dying in New York State run and privately operated facilities and group homes. I must bring your attention to a recent Albany Times Union article where the head of the State agency that is fielding over a staggering 7,000 calls to their abuse hotline every month in New York State and is part of covering up most reported cases is actually defending the regular use of restraints http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Probe-worry-curbs-actions-9957414.php . Please read this story and my commentary that just came out publicly http://www.timesunion.com/tuplus-opinion/article/Ban-use-of-restraints-on-the-disabled-9969841.php . The shocking statements regarding the use of restraints by Jay Kiyonaga who is the acting Executive Director of the fraudulent New York State Justice Center are quite disturbing.
Emergency actions must finally be taken to ensure much safer care and services for our disabled throughout our nation, which must include major restrictions on the use of restraints. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has recognized the use of restraints as a major problem nationwide, even using Jonathan’s story in a Congressional hearing http://autismschoolabuse.com/ . Restraints must rarely be used and only in emergency situations and they cannot restrict breathing. Restraints cannot continue to be used as standard operating procedure. The statement made by Jay Kiyonaga, likening restraining vulnerable and disabled people to a doctor treating a patient as if restraints of these people should be standard operating procedure is reprehensible and unconscionable.

People with disabilities need and deserve safe care and services, period. If God forbid they need emergency assistance as my son Jonathan did obviously 911 must be required by law to be immediately called. Governor Cuomo’s fraudulent Justice Center and agency head in almost every imaginable way are handling the disabled and after the fact when they are abused or neglected and victims of crimes, in medical distress or even stopped breathing wrong. They actually think the emergency 911 call systems do not need to be immediately and directly called by the mandated reporters. Governor Cuomo’s fraudulent Justice Center and agency head are handling literally almost everything the exact opposite than the way it should be including the use of deadly restraints. It is the disabled that must be served properly, provided excellent and safe care and be protected, these are some of our most vulnerable amongst us in simple need of daily assistance with their care.

Stand with us for “equal rights” and “civil rights” for people with disabilities in New York State and throughout our great country by signing our petition at www.jonathancareyfoundation.org. No longer can 911 be bypassed, 911 call systems must be immediately called by all mandated reporters regarding all physical and sexual assaults, gross negligence of care, significant and suspicious injuries and when a person with a disability is in medical distress or has stopped breathing. http://jonathancareyfoundation.org/donate/

Michael Carey
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