IG blasts NY agencies for ‘shoddy’ probe in abuse of disabled boy
June 19th, 2008From the [Albany] Times-Union, Associated Press in Newsday.
Two New York agencies responsible for caring for people with disabilities neglected their duties, conducted a “shoddy” investigation, and withheld information from the family of a boy with autism who died in the state’s care, a report by the state inspector general has concluded.
The 244-page report evaluated abuse allegations relating to Jonathan Carey that dated from 2004. Carey, who was diagnosed with autism, died last year at the age of 13 while on a field trip from a state-run institution when a worker restrained him during a van ride. His death led to the passage of “Jonathan’s law” in New York, a measure that opened up records on abuse complaints involving people with disabilities.
The Commission on Quality of Care and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities ran a “shoddy child-abuse investigation, failing to fully address allegations that Jonathan was neglected, inadequately fed and left to lie naked on a urine-soaked bed,” the inspector general’s report concluded. The Office of Mental Retardation and Development Disabilities was also criticized.
The report recommended a review of state law about abuse in institutional settings.

