TX: Homicide ruled in 4th death at troubled kids' facility

Boy, 16, asphyxiated in November after being restrained inside a closet (Owens had refused to show the staffer what he was holding in his hand, which turned out to be the cap of a pen)

By TERRI LANGFORD HOUSTON CHRONICLE

Jan. 7, 2011

Texas - The restraint death of a 16-year-old boy at Daystar Residential Inc., a facility for troubled children, has been ruled a homicide caused by "complications of mechanical asphyxia," according to the Harris County Institute of Forensic Science.

Michael Kevin Owens suffocated and died on Nov. 5 after a Daystar staffer placed him in a physical restraint inside a bedroom closet because he would not show the staffer what he held in his hand. Owens' death was the fourth restraint-related fatality to occur at Daystar or its sister facilities. Daystar is located 25 miles south of Houston.

The name of the staffer has not been released, and the case will go before a grand jury to determine whether criminal charges will be filed, according to Brazoria County District Attorney Jeri Yenne.

Owens' death occurred just days after the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services notified Daystar that it was on probation, and the incident prompted the agency to place the Manvel-based facility, for the third time, under the watch of a state monitor.

The agency is reviewing the autopsy report, which was issued to them late Thursday.

"We have been going through a very deliberate process of evaluating Daystar's state license, and this ruling is an important piece," said Patrick Crimmins, DFPS' spokesman.

For more information, please follow the link: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7369710.html

FL: Florida 'gutted' child restraint bill of most important protections, mother of restrained child says

From The Palm Beach News:

By PAT BEALL AND LAURA GREEN

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Updated: 11:59 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 10, 2010

Posted: 11:48 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 10, 2010

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/schools/florida-gutted-child-restraint-bill-of-most-important-964179.html

Port Orange Republican Dorothy Hukill's legislation restricting seclusion and restraint of Florida schoolchildren earned the state representative national notice.

"Florida was going to be the model for other states to follow," said Lori Mcllwain, a spokeswoman for the 10,000-member American Autism Association.

By the time it got to the governor's desk, though, Hukill's bill was stripped of its toughest provision: Instead of banning prone restraint, the bill was altered to bar restraint that can restrict a child's breathing.

"They took a good bill that had protective language for children with disabilities and gutted the bill, took out all the safety precautions," said Phyllis Musumeci, a mother whose son was forcibly held in a prone restraint more than 20 times at a Palm Beach County school. The Autism Association agreed: In a 180-degree turn, the group urged a letter writing campaign to persuade Gov. Charlie Crist to veto the bill.

"Was it as strong as I would have liked it to be? No," said Hukill of the new law, which took effect this year. "Am I delighted that we are finally addressing the problem? Absolutely."

***************

Even so, parts of the new law may not be as effective as hoped. Take training. Provisions call for enhanced training to offset risk. When it comes to prone restraint, though, Ohio's search of national literature doesn't support that idea, said Michael Rench, Ohio Rehabilitative Services Commission Administrator. Ohio last year banned prone restraint by most government employees, including teachers. "Everything we found was that it just is not safe even when applied by well-trained individuals," he said. As an example, Mark Kamleiter, a St. Petersburg lawyer and former public school behavioral specialist said prone restraint frequently calls for two or more people to apply force. One person may know the amount of force he is applying, but wouldn't necessarily know how much force the other person is applying. "You can hurt the child by accident," he points out.

For instance, 12-year-old Michael Wiltsie died in an Ocala youth camp in 2000 after a counselor pinned him to the ground. A grand jury found that the counselor was following proper procedures.

"You cannot train a person how to safely do a prone restraint," said Barbara Trader, executive director of TASH, a Washington advocacy group for people with disabilities. "It's not possible."

To read the full article, please follow the link: http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/schools/florida-gutted-child-restraint-bill-of-most-important-964179.html

ME: Classroom crises - How does a teacher respond?

From the Portland Press Herald:

October 11, 2010

A group of city educators gets training to defuse situations when students become angry or upset.

By Kelley Bouchard kbouchard@mainetoday.com
Staff Writer

PORTLAND - Peter McCormack moves around the room as if the information he's about to share can't wait to get out.

In front of him are 17 Portland teachers, education technicians, social workers and others who have signed up for a three-day training course in how to use Therapeutic Crisis Intervention techniques in school.

Some of them will stay for a fourth day to learn how to do physical restraints or holds, a controversial practice allowed in Maine schools when students are in danger of hurting themselves or others and all other efforts to calm them have failed.

"You are the best tool in any crisis situation," McCormack tells the teachers. "There are so many things you can do before resorting to physical intervention. Restraint truly is the intervention of last resort."

McCormack invited The Portland Press Herald to cover a recent training session in the hope of shedding light on a practice that is being scrutinized here in Maine and across the nation. Pressure is on to reduce the use of restraints, and many Maine schools are responding with increased training in alternative intervention methods and positive student supports.

In general, the methods call for building personal relationships with students, setting clear expectations for behavior, recognizing when and why students may be struggling or acting out, and responding with logic and compassion rather than anger and contempt.

"When a child is upset, it didn't happen out of nowhere, folks," McCormack says during the first day of training. "There's always a cause. It may not be right in front of you, but it's there. You have to know your child. And depending on your response, you're either going to throw gasoline on the situation or you're going to throw water on the situation."

***********

Superintendent Jim Morse has charged McCormack and East End Principal Marcia Gendron, also newly appointed from her former job as principal of Reiche Community School, with greatly reducing the number of restraints at East End.

"More often than not, the use of restraint only escalates a situation," Morse said. "Our goal is to keep kids in school and keep them learning. We want teachers to have the skill sets in their toolbox to de-escalate disruptive situations and help youngsters refocus."

Morse said he wants to reduce the overall number of physical restraints in Portland schools, which last year included seven at Longfellow Elementary School, four at Riverton Community School, three at Lyseth Elementary School and two at Moore Middle School. Nine other Portland public schools reported no restraints.

Moreover, Morse said, he wants all Portland schools to have a more positive and personal approach to behavior and discipline. With that in mind, he's moving to adopt a federally endorsed system known as Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports across Maine's largest school district.

For the full article, please follow the link: http://www.pressherald.com/news/its-teachers-time-to-learn-handling-a-classroom-crisis_2010-10-11.html

NE: Dept of Ed Develops Restraint and Seclusion Document

JULY 28, 2010

http://preventionperspectives.com/nebraska-doe-develops-document-on-restraint-and-seclusion/

The Nebraska Department of Education developed a technical assistance document, Developing School Policies & Procedures for Physical Restraint and Seclusion in Nebraska Schools.

The document was created to provide schools information and guidance to create or revise policies regarding use of restraint and seclusion, based on national policy directions and research.

It contains sections on developing policies and procedures on restraint and seclusion, components of policies and procedures, and examples of policies.

View the Developing School Policy & Procedures for Physical Restraint and Seclusion in Nebraska Schools technical assistance document.

NJ: Restraints used by NJ educators to curb unruly behavior under scrutiny

Excerpt from APP.com:

It's been called "the dirty little secret'' of special education.

New Jersey gives public and private schools a virtual free pass to forcibly restrain unruly children with disabilities.

School employees can use "bear hugs,'' "basket holds'' and "take downs'' … which sound more like wrestling moves than anything you'd expect to see in school … and keep children confined in "time-out'' rooms until they calm down.

Last year, congressional investigators uncovered hundreds of cases of alleged abuse and at least 20 deaths related to the use of restraints and seclusion in U.S. schools since 1990.

State law also allows school employees to use extreme measures to control severely autistic children who habitually injure themselves by banging their heads, biting their hands or other compulsive behaviors. The techniques include spraying water or noxious chemicals in kids' faces, snapping their wrists with rubber bands or putting hot sauce on their tongues, disability rights advocates say.

Educators and crisis-intervention experts say restraining holds and other forceful methods are sometimes necessary, as a last resort, to protect children and others from harm. Moreover, they reflect the serious behavior problems schools have to contend with today, especially in special education.

For more information, please click on the following link: http://www.app.com/article/20100505/SPECIAL20/100504060/1024/POLITICS/Restraints-used-by-NJ-educators-to-curb-unruly-behavior-under-scrutiny

Announcement: National Autism Association Urges FL Governor's Refusal of Flawed Restraint/Seclusion Bill

Excerpt from National Autism Association:

Gutted bill strips away ability to prevent abusive treatments of children in Florida classrooms

TALLAHASSEE, Fla., May 5 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Autism Association (NAA) today is asking parents and advocates for children to contact Florida governor Charlie Crist, urging that he not sign legislation that has been stripped of its original intent to protect children from harmful restraint and seclusion practices in Florida schools. This alarming trend is on the rise nationwide.

A May, 2009 report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) brought to light incidents of abusive classroom treatments of our nation's schoolchildren that have resulted in serious injury and death. Often the children subjected to these practices have diagnoses of autism or related disorders. The GAO report revealed deaths from "mechanical compression to the chest," or "smothering." One schoolchild died from restraint following a seizure, another died from hanging himself in a seclusion room. Other cases included a four-year-old girl who was tied to a chair and abused, five children who were duct-taped to their desks, and a ten-year-old boy who was put in a seclusion room "75 times over a 6-month period for hours at a time for offenses such as whistling, slouching and hand-waving."

The original Florida bill, SB 2118: Use of Seclusion and Restraint on Students with Disabilities, was written with significant parental input that no longer existed in the version passed by the Florida state Senate last Thursday. According to Port St. Lucieparent Anna Moore, whose son Isaiah was brutally restrained while at school in 2007, "This version of the bill is a disgrace. I don't see the protections from the dangerous and even deadly restraint and seclusion practices that are being used on our most vulnerable children. If anything, I am worried it will do more harm than good for children subjected to these inhumane treatments."

Among the concerns of Mrs. Moore and other parents are that the bill:

• Allows schools to wait 3 school days before mailing the incident report to parents. If a child was restrained on Friday, it is likely a parent would not receive an incident report until the following Friday or Monday thereafter.
• Does not afford parents any rights if they disagree with a practice used or believe a child was abused.
• Allows school districts to self-monitor restraint/seclusion events with no independent oversight. Data does not go to federal Department of Education and does not include information about prior complaints from parents regarding district's failure to provide proper supports/services according to IDEA.
• Does not require public reporting of data.
• Allows school districts to decide their own policies on data collection, incident reporting, and monitoring with no independent oversight.
• Does not adequately define or address the use of seclusion/solitary confinement which has resulted in severe abuse in numerous cases.
• Fails to provide prohibition against the use of aversive interventions that compromise health and safety.
• Fails to require that Applied Behavior Analysis or other Positive Behavior Interventions that are evidence-based be used to prevent behaviors or training for such interventions.
• Fails to designate penalties for violations.

For more information, please click on the following link: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/national-autism-association-urges-florida-governors-refusal-of-flawed-restraint--seclusion-bill-92874484.html

IN: Lawsuit - 8 yr old Boy with Autism Tied to Chair

Excerpt from TheIndyChannel.com:

IPS Policy, Indiana Law Allows Children To Be Restrained

POSTED: 4:08 pm EDT April 29, 2010

UPDATED: 6:08 pm EDT April 29, 2010

INDIANAPOLIS -- The mother of an 8-year-old boy with autism is suing Indianapolis Public Schools after she said her son was tied to a chair by a teacher's aide.

Jennifer Robbins said she went to William Penn ElementarySchool on Jan. 14 for a conference and found her son, Hudson, belted to a chair in the corner of his classroom, 6News' Joanna Massee reported.

"It was wrapped around and tied twice in a double knot," said Robbins, who described the mostly non-verbal boy as looking disheveled and as if he had been crying.

She said her son's teacher and two teacher's aides were in the classroom at the time, and that the school's principal, Rhonda Akers, apologized for the incident.

For more information, please click on the following link: http://www.theindychannel.com/news/23310041/detail.html

VIDEO: America's Forgotten Children

This heart-wrenching video by Anna Moore and Nelson Rivera is a must see for anyone interested in learning more about the physical and emotional abuse our children have suffered in schools.

Children have been seriously injured - some have even died during restraints performed by school personnel, their deaths ruled by coroners as homicides - yet all-too-often no charges are filed nor is any disciplinary action taken against those who have caused those injuries or deaths.

In too many cases, schools willfully, knowingly, and deliberately cover up the abuse, even going so far as to manufacture evidence against the child or family. Then they assign blame to the child and/or family for the abuse. "If only he/she hadn't said/done that we wouldn't have needed to restraint him/her." Even if the child's behaviors/actions weren't violent or could be considered dangerous to themselves or others.

Some states also have laws which grant immunity to educators who harm children in schools - so they cannot be prosecuted.

State police departments and offices of protective services have turned families away who seek help - because the allegations involve a school or school personnel.

Why are schools and school personnel (legally) held to a different standard? This must stop!

Please watch the video, and if you are so inclined, forward the video to as many as you can.

Please also consider contacting your state lawmakers and ask for more protections for disabled children. Ask that those who intentionally harm children in our schools be held criminally accountable for assault, battery, or homicide where appropriate. Ask that those who work with disabled children be fully trained to recognize how "behaviors" can be part and parcel to the child's disability - that those "behaviors" are how those children communicate. Ask for training in other, safer, scientifically-based methods (such as PBIS) which could be used instead of aversives to "deal with" problem behaviors.

Thanks for your attention to this very serious matter!

Announcement: Dr. Phil Show on School Abuse/Arrests 4/15/10

From Dr. Phi:

Fighting for Your Child

Parents: What should you do when you feel your child’s rights are being violated? Twelve-year-old Alexa made headlines when she was arrested for doodling on her desk at school. Her mother, Moraima, says she feels outraged and helpless by the incident. Areva Martin, attorney and author of The Everyday Advocate, weighs in. Then, dramatic surveillance video captures a mute, autistic 14-year-old boy being dragged out of a classroom and placed in a dark room. Hear how his father, Vikas, claims his son was being abused. And, a technique known as prone restraint is being used in schools across the country to subdue out-of-control students. Is this method discipline or abuse? Dr. Phil examines the story of an eighth grader who died after he was physically restrained by a teacher.

Slideshow: 9 Most Ridiculous Reasons Kids Have Been Arrested

The Huffington Post is currently running a slideshow of story excerpts on the most ridiculous reasons why kids have been arrested.

Most of the stories involved arrests from schools, and include some stories we've previously covered here, such as the boy who was arrested for "passing gas," the twelve year old who was recently arrested for doodling on her desk with an erasable marker, and the 8 yr old girl with autism who was arrested after she was physically restrained and banned from attending her class Christmas party for refusing to take off her "cow" sweatshirt.

To view the slideshow in its entirety, please follow the link: http://tinyurl.com/yl84op6

Bipartisan Legislation to Prevent Abuse in Schools Clears House Committee

UNITED STATES CONGRESS

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Melissa Salmanowitz (Miller) 202.226.0853

Todd Weiner (McMorris Rodgers) 202.225.2006

Bipartisan Legislation to Prevent Abuse in Schools Clears House Committee

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The House Education and Labor Committee today passed bipartisan legislation to make classrooms safer for students and school staff by preventing the misuse of restraint and seclusion. The Committee passed the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4227) by a vote of 34 to 10.

A U.S. Government Accountability Office report released last spring exposed hundreds of cases of schoolchildren being abused as a result of inappropriate uses of restraint and seclusion, often involving untrained staff. In some cases, children died. A disproportionate number of these victims were students with disabilities. In some of the cases GAO investigated, ropes, duct tape, chairs with straps and bungee cords were used to restrain or isolate young children.

“This bill makes clear that there is no place in our schools for abuse and torture,” said U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee. “The egregious abuse of a child should not be considered less criminal because it happens in a classroom -- it should be the opposite. I’m proud that this bill has bipartisan support and I hope the full House will vote on it soon.”

“I’m pleased that H.R. 4247, the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act, was reported out of Committee today. This is a victory for students, parents, families, educators, and advocates who have worked tirelessly to ensure the health and safety of children in schools,” said U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), a member of the House Education and Labor Committee and vice chair of the House Republican Conference.

“When I send my son Cole to school, I send him with the expectation that he is safe from danger. Yet, there have been hundreds of cases in which schoolchildren were harmed as a result of inappropriate uses of restraint and seclusion. Our bill is a long stride forward in ensuring that our tax dollars are not used to abuse children. I look forward to working with Chairman Miller and my colleagues to pass this bill through Congress this year, and have it signed into law.”

Unlike in hospitals and other medical and community-based facilities that receive federal health funding, there are currently no federal laws addressing restraint and seclusion in schools. While the Children’s Health Act of 2000 regulates how and when restraint and seclusion can be used on children in these other settings, this bill would cover schools for the first time. State regulation and oversight varies greatly; many states provide no guidance or assistance regarding these behavioral interventions.

The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act will, for the first time, put in place minimum safety standards to prevent abusive restraint and seclusion in schools across the country, similar to protections already in place in medical and community based facilities. After two years, states will need to have their own policies in place to meet these minimum standards. It would apply to public schools, private schools and preschools receiving federal education support.

Specifically the legislation would:

· Limit physical restraint and locked seclusion, allowing these interventions only when there is imminent danger of injury, and only when imposed by trained staff;

· Outlaw mechanical restraints, such as strapping kids to chairs, and prohibit restraints that restrict breathing;

· Require schools to notify parents after incidents when restraint or seclusion was used;

· Encourage states to provide support and training to better protect students and prevent the need for emergency behavioral interventions; and

· Increase transparency, oversight and enforcement tools to prevent future abuse.

The legislation embodies principles outlined by the Obama administration in December. It has the support of nearly 100 organizations, including the National School Boards Association, the National Education Association, and the American Federation of Teachers. See a full list of supporters here:

http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2010/01/supporters-of-the-preventing-h.shtml

Miller first requested the GAO investigation in January 2009, after the National Disability Rights Network released a report highlighting these abuses.

For more information about the bill, click here.

To learn more about definitions in the bill, click here.

To learn more about the myths/facts in regards to this bill, click here.

Restraint & Seclusion Legislation/Hearing Feb 4, 2010

News ● U.S. House of Representatives

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EDUCATION & LABOR COMMITTEE

Congressman George Miller, Chairman

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ADVISORY FOR Thursday, February 4, 2010

Press Office, 202-226-0853

Advisory: House Education Committee to Consider Legislation to Protect Children From Abuse in Schools

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Thursday, February 4^th, the House Education and Labor Committee will consider legislation that will protect schoolchildren from harmful uses of restraint and seclusion in their classrooms.

A recent investigation by the U.S. Government Accountability Office found hundreds of allegations that children have been abused, and some even died, as a result of misuses of restraint and seclusion in public and private schools, often at the hands of untrained staff. Unlike in hospitals and other medical and community-based facilities that receive federal health funding, there are currently no federal laws addressing restraint and seclusion in schools.

The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4247) is the first national effort to address this troubling problem and ensure the safety of everyone involved – both students and school staff. It would establish minimum safety standards in schools and increase transparency, oversight and enforcement to prevent future abuse, among other things. Learn more here: http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2009/12/preventing-harmful-restraint-a.shtml.

WHAT: Full Committee Mark-Up of H.R. 4247 “The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act”

WHEN: Thursday, February 4, 2009

11:00 a.m. ET

WHERE: House Education and Labor Committee Hearing Room

2175 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, D.C.

Note: This hearing will be webcast live from the Education and Labor Committee website. You can access the webcast when the hearing begins at 11:00 am Eastern here.

TX: 2009 Restraint Report Issued; Number Unchanged Since 2008

Excerpt from the Texas Tribune:

Still Restrained

By Emily Ramshaw

January 10, 2010

Texas educators forcibly pinned down students with disabilities as many times in 2009 as they did in 2008, despite efforts to curb the practice in public schools.

The static numbers hide dramatic drops in restraints in many large school districts. Because many smaller school districts reported restraints for the first time in 2009, statewide numbers remained virtually unchanged.

School districts like Leander and Garland, which had some of the most restraints in 2008, cut their numbers in half in 2009, according to data collected by the Texas Education Agency (TEA). But some tiny school districts reported dozens of restraints, even when they had just a few disabled students.

Of the 10 school districts that reported the most restraints of disabled students in 2008, all but one saw fewer restraints in 2009. The Northside school district in San Antonio reported 1,604 restraints in 2009 — up almost 13 percent from the previous year. Meanwhile, Leander’s restraints dropped by 55 percent. Austin’s fell by 22 percent. And Garland more than halved its restraints.

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Advocates for children with disabilities say it’s a good sign that restraints appear to be dropping in many large school districts — though they question whether the practice is being phased out, or whether districts have simply changed their reporting method.

“If there are some drops, I think it’s entirely random,” said Steve Elliot, an attorney who reviews school districts restraints for the non-profit Advocacy, Inc. “There is no evidence the state has been doing anything about it.”

And they say restraints, which are dangerous and are supposed to be used only as a last resort, are still far too prevalent in Texas schools. In both 2008 and 2009, Texas educatorsrestrained students with disabilities roughly 18,000 times a year — an average of 100 times a day. In some cases, the children were injured, suffering everything from bruises and black eyes to broken bones.

To access the full article, please click the following link: http://www.texastribune.org/stories/2010/jan/12/still-restrained/