The Death of an Autistic Child in School

New: Restraint in schools and the death of #MaxBenson.

"It shouldn't take the death of a teenage boy to stop overuse of restraint in schools. But, given how ingrained such practices are in our educational systems, and the 120,000 kids experiencing restraint or seclusion each year, I'm worried this one death won't be enough."

Coroner Blames Autism. for the death a Latino Autistic Student held Upsidedown

Anthony Corona died after being placed with his head between his legs for twelve minutes. In the aftermath, the coronor at least partially blamed autism for his death.

Following a physical confrontation with another student and after school employees' attempts to restrain Corona failed, the bus driver pushed the teen's shoulders down, forcing his head between his legs, for 12 minutes until he stopped breathing, a San Bernardino police report stated. He died in the hospital a short time later, officials said.

Authorities concluded the death was a homicide, which means "death at the hands of another, but not necessarily implying intent or culpability," states a coroner's report provided by the family's attorney Dale Nowicki. His death resulted from "positional asphyxia," meaning he was put in a position where he couldn't breathe for several minutes, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department Coroner Division and San Bernardino police Lt. Mike Madden. Corona's autism and mental retardation contributed to his death, a coroner's report states.

I'm looking for the actual report, but this trend of blaming a diagnosis, rather than the violence visited on the disabled body,  is both pernicious and pervasive. This kind of restraint is lethal far too often to far too many people, and in the aftermath, medical and law enforcement authorities fixate on the disability rather than the action (even should the action be justified). See both Ethan Saylor and Eric Garner for widely publicized examples.

More to come.

Michael Marshall - Homeless, Disabled, Black, In Custody, Dead from Prone Restraint

Michael Marshall is the latest victim of the Cult Of Compliance.

Last November Marshall, who had schizophrenia, was placed into prone restraint and died, choking on his own vomit. This piece discusses the technique and links it to the death of Ethan Saylor and Eric Garner.

Notice how the DA places blame for Marshall's death on his disability.

Denver officials on Friday released surveillance footage of deputies' encounter with Michael Marshall, 50, a homeless man who had been jailed for trespassing and died because of "complications of positional asphyxia," according to the medical examiner.

District Attorney Mitch Morrissey said he wouldn't file criminal charges against the six deputies involved, saying multiple factors, including lung and heart disease, also contributed to the death. The deputies' use of force was necessary against the struggling inmate, Morrissey said. 

Intersections: Race, class, disability, the carceral state. The criminalization of homelessness. So much more. It's everything I write about in one horrific, fatal, episode.

And no one is being held accountable.

Here's the video. Obvious trigger warnings apply.