We Need a New Court System for People with Intellectual Disabilities
We need a new court system for people with intellectual disabilities who get into trouble | Expert Opinion
Tine Hansen-Turton, Lori Plunkett, Liz Hayden and Scott Spreat, For the Inquirer
Woods Community at Brian’s House is a Chester County-based group home provider for people with intellectual disability and autism. One of our residents is a soft-spoken 25-year-old, diagnosed with intellectual disability and a genetic disorder called Prader Willi Syndrome which can mean life-threatening obesity due to a lack of normal hunger cues. This young man also has impulse control and oppositional defiance disorders and can be quick to anger. And like others with his challenges, he requires 24/7 direct care.
Until the advent of the pandemic, he was working in the community and taking karate classes three times a week, which he loved. Usually his occasional angry outbursts can be de-escalated. But one day in April, something triggered him. He threatened a staff member with a knife, and refused efforts to calm him.
We called 911, and police officers were able to convince him to drop the knife and took him to a hospital emergency room. After a psychiatric evaluation he was sent to a specialty hospital for treatment. Brian’s House wanted him discharged back to their care, confident that his problems could be addressed by staff he knew and trusted — and who didn’t want to press charges against him. However, charges were filed anyway. He was sent to jail but released within 24 hours on $50,000 bail.