Articles
Parolee Arrested for Sexually Assaulting Disabled Man
A man was arrested in Friday for allegedly sexually assaulting a developmentally disabled man. The suspect is a registered sex offender, and has a prior conviction for rape by force or fear. CALIFORNIA (Sacramento County), Fox 40, March 12, 2013
Sheriff: Man forced dependent adult into sex act
A dependent adult was forced into performing oral sex behind an Elverta shopping center last Friday, according to an arrest report from the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department. CALIFORNIA (Sacramento County), News 10, March 13, 2013
Norwalk man sentenced for rape of mentally disabled woman
Stamford Police arrested Polynice on March 27, 2011, after investigating a complaint that he had sexual relations with a developmentally disabled woman while employed as a bus driver with the Greenwich-based nonprofit Abilis, which provides employment ...
Official charged with theft from disabled
The former business administrator of a southwestern Ohio center for developmentally disabled adults has been charged with stealing more than $400,000 from the center. Montgomery County's prosecutor said Douglas Carter, 46, of Gahanna, was indicted ...
Ex-bus driver gets 160 years for abusing disabled kids
Ex-bus driver gets 160 years for abusing disabled kids. A 46-year-old former New Hampshire school bus driver was sentenced Friday to 160 years in federal prison for sexually abusing special-needs children and recording the attacks. Post to Facebook ...
Troutdale man accused of raping disabled woman
PORTLAND - Multnomah County sheriff's deputies arrested a Troutdale man accused of raping a developmentally disabled woman. KGW reports a grand jury indicted Cedric Graves last week. If convicted he faces as much as 20 years ... http://bit.ly/13qq4Yn
Senator Urges Federal Probe Into Abuse, Neglect Of Developmentally Disabled
U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy is calling for a nationwide investigation into the "alarming number of deaths and cases of abuse" of developmentally disabled individuals at government-financed residential facilities. Murphy sent a letter to the inspector general of the Department of Health and Human Services Monday, requesting an immediate investigation, with an emphasis on preventable deaths at privately run group homes. "Privatization of care may mean lower costs but without the proper oversight and requirements for well-trained staff... March 04 -- The Hartford Courant
Abuse, Neglect Cited As Factors In Deaths Of Dozens of Developmentally Disabled In State Care
FRAGILE LIVES; NEEDLESS DEATHS
Paula Berardi thought she'd found a safe haven for her developmentally disabled daughter, Tracey Hilliard. Four other group homes hadn't worked out, and Tracey, who also had medical problems, was a handful at home. The state Department of Mental Retardation put Tracey with a licensed provider named Sophie Caro, who cared for several developmentally disabled adults at her home in Meriden. The placement proved tragic...March 3 - The Hartford Courant
Police: Caregiver killed mentally disabled client
A caregiver is charged in the beating death of her mentally disabled client. Deputies said 47-year-old Susan Walter died early Saturday morning in Covington. Police charged a caregiver with felony murder and failure to protect a disabled person. GEORGIA (Covington), WSBTV, March 7, 2013
Bus aide accused of forcibly touching disabled woman
A bus aide from a local bus company has been accused of inappropriately touching a developmentally disabled woman, Utica police said. NEW YORK (Utica), Utica Observer-Dispatch, March 7, 2013
Caregiver Indicted in Abuse of Disabled Man
A Baltimore group home worker who was identified in a video in which a mentally disabled man is seen being hit and spit upon has been indicted on multiple counts of abuse, neglect and assault by a Howard County grand jury. MARYLAND (Baltimore), Columbia Patch, March 1, 2013
Flint woman accused of beating disabled Flushing Township adult foster care resident with broom
A Flint woman is facing criminal charges after authorities say she beat a developmentally disabled woman in her care with a broom. The suspect was charged with third-degree vulnerable adult abuse... MICHIGAN (Flushing Township), Michigan Live, March 4, 2013
Tracking Abuse Among A Vulnerable Population Is A Difficult Task
In the summer of 2011, Angelica Rivera took out her frustrations, she told police, on a 24-year-old woman with autism and the intellectual capacity of a 10-year-old - kicking the mentally frail woman, whipping her with a belt and dragging her by the hair across the floor of the small East Hartford group home where Rivera worked and the disabled woman lived. A cellphone video of the attack made its way to local police nearly a year later, and the disturbing images prompted outrage well beyond East Hartford. But one detail was mostly lost in the intense coverage: An official with the group home's parent company - which cares for about two dozen developmentally disabled residents across the state - told police that eight other employees had been fired for abuse in the nine months before Rivera was arrested. If she hasn't already, Rivera will likely be added to a non-public Connecticut registry of caregivers for the developmentally disabled who were fired for abuse and neglect. More than 125 names appear... March 3
Abuse, Neglect Cited In Deaths Of Developmentally Disabled In State Care
A Hartford Courant investigation has discovered that dozens of developmentally disabled people in state care have died in cases where investigators cited abuse, neglect or medical error as a factor. Those conditions were cited during investigations into the deaths of 76 intellectually disabled people receiving state services... March 1
Official charged with theft from disabled
The former business administrator of a southwestern Ohio center for developmentally disabled adults has been charged with stealing more than $400,000 from the center. He was indicted on 15 felony counts, including aggravated theft, theft in office, forgery, money laundering and tampering with government records. OHIO (Columbus), The Columbus Dispatch, February 23, 2013
Trial for 2 charged with raping disabled woman is delayed
The federal trial of two illegal immigrants from Mexico charged with kidnapping and raping a mentally disabled woman in Washington County has been delayed because the defense says it needs time to hire an expert to evaluate her mental condition. The FBI and the U.S. attorney's office say the two men kidnapped the woman on July 7 from outside her home and held her captive at one suspect's house, where they raped her for four days. WEST VIRGINIA (Wheeling), Post-Gazette, February 23, 2013
Bus Driver Sentenced to Eight Years in Assault of Developmentally Disabled ...
A Norwalk bus driver has been sentenced to eight years in prison for sexually assaulting a developmentally disabled woman. The Hour of Norwalk reports 30-year-old Wanto Polynice also received 35 years of probation in a sentence ... --- CBS Local --- February 19, 2013 (CONNECTICUT) http://is.gd/JZdfwM
Bus Driver Who Sexually Assaulted, Videotaped Special Needs Kids from NH, Maine Gets 160 Years
A bus driver who admits sexually assaulting and videotaping the special needs children he transported in New Hampshire and Maine has been sentenced to 160 years in prison. --- Fox News --- February 22, 2013 (NEW HAMPSHIRE) http://is.gd/zA2RyS
W. Va. Teacher Suspended for Putting Special Needs Student In Cardboard Box
The Wood County school board has upheld a teacher's suspension for putting a box labeled "bad kid fort" around a special-needs student ... --- CBS Local --- February 14, 2013 (WEST VIRGINIA) http://is.gd/7oLMtG
Man sentenced in disabled woman's rape
A Norwalk man found guilty by a jury in November of raping a mentally impaired woman was sentenced Tuesday to serve eight years in prison and 35 years of probation. After two days of deliberation following a two-week trial, a jury found the man guilty of second-degree sexual assault by virtue that the woman, who was 20 years old at the time, was mentally defective to the extent that she was unable to consent to sexual intercourse. CONNECTICUT (Stamford), Stamford Advocate, February 19, 2013
Augusta mother of disabled man indicted on murder charge
The mother of a young Augusta man whose badly decomposed remains were found in her home last fall has been indicted on a charge of murder. The woman, who was her son's caretaker, was arrested on a charge of concealing a death after the body of her 23-year-old son was found in the family's home. Because of the body's condition, the coroner was unable to pinpoint the exact time of death. GEORGIA (Augusta), The Augusta Chronicle, February 21, 2013
Woman Suspected of Illegally Using Vulnerable Adult's ATM Card
A Crystal woman is accused of using the ATM card of a "vulnerable adult" who was a client of the disabled-adult provider the woman worked for. MINNESOTA (Minneapolis), Hopkins Patch, February 21, 2013
Driver, matron plead guilty in death of disabled man abandoned in passenger van
A van driver and a matron pleaded guilty today in the pitiful, hyperthermia death of a mentally disabled man they had carelessly abandoned in a sweltering passenger van in East Harlem in 2011. NEW YORK (East Harlem), New York Post, February 15, 2013
Man Arrested in Repeated Rape of Mentally Disabled Woman: DA
A Berks county man is arrested, after authorities say he repeatedly raped a mentally disabled woman over the span of two years. The man owned a transportation business and drove the woman to Special Olympics events. PENNSYLVANIA (Berks County), NBC Philadelphia, February 15, 2013
Robert Saylor's Death Ruled A Homicide: Man With Down Syndrome Died In Police Custody
The death of a man with Down syndrome who was reportedly killed after lying face-down in police custody has been ruled a homicide. WJLA reports that Robert Saylor, 26, of New Market, Md., was asphyxiated on Jan. 12, according to a medical examiner's ruling late last week. A "law enforcement source familiar with the case" told the station that Saylor "went into distress when he was put face down... Maryland - Feb. 19
