Letter Telling Family to Euthanize Autistic Child Ruled Out as a Hate Crime

dinsdag 20 augustus 2013

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota

In a letter that proves that there is pink paper in the depths of hell, a family of a teenager with autism was recently told to euthanize the 13-year-old or move out of their neighborhood. The typed letter that came from an anonymous neighbor of Maxwell Begley's family has gone viral, angering just about anyone who reads it. That includes the cops, who are trying to figure out what to do about the "pissed off mother" who sent the note.

For starters, if and when they find her, they won't be charging her with a hate crime.

It's too bad.

The letter is certainly full of hateful comments about the 13-year-old, from urging the Begleys to donate whatever “non-retarded body parts he possesses" to science to referring to noises the child makes when outside as "noise polluting whaling (sic)." But Durham Regional Police in the Begleys' hometown of Newcastle, Ontario, have reviewed the letter and determined the language doesn't qualify as a hate crime under Canadian statutes.

That's the bad news.

The good news is that the cops have taken the letter in as evidence, and they are trying to do something about it.

Criminal charges could come of this. Thank goodness.

Because a letter like that can't just make us mad. While that's all well and good in terms of increasing awareness of the discrimination and cruelty kids on the autism spectrum (and their families) encounter, Internet outrage isn't worth a whole lot. Throw in $1.50 and you might get a decent cup of coffee.

A letter like this crosses so many lines that it has to get the writer in real trouble, right? Otherwise, what's to keep them from doing it again?

Criminalizing behavior like this is the only sure way to prevent it from being repeated.

Frankly, it's hard to figure out the exact line between freedom of speech and harassing speech, and I'll admit I'm no expert on Canadian laws.

It's OK to hate on your neighbors from the privacy of your own home -- according to one survey, as many as 60 percent of people have admitted they don't get along with the folks next door. But you certainly don't take it beyond personal griping, and especially not in the form of a hate-filled screed about an innocent child.

It would seem to be criminal to have actually sent this letter to the family. This wasn't a letter someone wrote on their own computer, printed, then balled up and threw away. It wasn't even a rather inappropriate blog post.

This was a letter specifically sent to the Begley family. It was meant to hit them at home, on their own turf, where they should be able to feel safe, where Maxwell should be able to feel loved.

At the very least, the letter writer should be forced to do a little community service ... perhaps at a place that serves kids with special needs?

Check out the letter -- do you think it's criminal?

Images via Frederic Bisson/Flickr; Begley family

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Half-Brother Arrested in Murder of 11-Year-Old Autistic Boy Has a Disturbing Past

woensdag 17 juli 2013

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
by Kiri Blakeley 11 hours ago

The case of a missing autistic 11-year-old boy, Terry Dewayne Smith, took a shockingly horrific turn when he was found murdered -- and then his 16-year-old half-brother was arrested. Now more shocking news has emerged. The judge in the case said that the teen defendant had a "history of violent outbursts." The young boy reportedly may have died from head injuries, according to his father. Ugh. Does this mean that the boy had been in danger all along?

The judge did not elaborate on the outbursts, but the teen will remain in custody until his next hearing because of public safety purposes. He had also been on probation, but the judge did not say what for.

His mother, Shawna Smith, and her partner, Dennise Bugna, were in the courtroom when the teen came in wearing a yellow jumpsuit. I can only imagine what they are going through, especially since Shawna left Terry in his older brother's care when the murder happened. Terry was found buried in a shallow grave near their home, but that was four days after the teen said he saw the boy wandering away from the house in Menifee, California.

If the teen had a history of violence, then I doubly feel for the mother, who must have had her hands full already. It's not easy to know what to do with a troublesome teen. Some grow out of it and turn out to be fine adults. Others just get worse. You can get a kid therapy, medication, and give him support, but at the end of the day, you're hoping for the best.

And praying that the worst -- something like this -- doesn't happen.

Some feel that the teen couldn't have possibly committed such a heinous act. Several people were in the courtroom to support him. One friend of the teen told the Press Enterprise:

He’s a good person and I just can't in good conscience make myself believe that he did this, or would even consider doing this.

Indeed it is difficult to believe. Terry was missing for days, while his half-brother joined in the search for him. Their aunt, Paula Smith, told the Los Angeles Times:

The boys didn't even disagree. There was no violence ever.

The teen has not admitted to anything yet, nor has he denied it, so we'll have to see how this all concludes. The heartache this family is going through has got to be immense.

Is there anything you'd like to say to the family?

Image via KTLA

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