An 18 year old Autistic boy, Dane Spurrell, was arrested and JAILED by officers who mistook his Autistic behavior for intoxication.
He was walking home Saturday night from the video store along a road in Mount Pearl, suburb of St.John's, and was apprehended by police when he wouldn't "Get on the side walk" as there was not sidewalk to walk on. The police asked to smell his breath and he resisted because he felt he hadn't done anything wrong. The Police did not even give this young man the opportunity to explain OR call his mother.
Here's the part that really gets me!
"They were like, 'Get in the car.' They were grabbing me and tossing me around and shaking me, and eventually, they got me down on the ground," Dane said.
His mother has filed a complaint with the RNC.
I am not a police officer or work in law enforcement.
I do respect most officers. I believe respect is earned, not demanded.
Can someone PLEASE explain to me how you can confuse public intoxication with Autism?
While your explaining that, how about why they, the arresting officers, would not let him explain or call his mother.
This young man is a high functioning Autistic adult. If it had been you or me, would we have been arrested? Adults living with autism have enough to deal with.
I'm not saying he was singled out, just that the officers involved need to be better trained or prepared or something.
Royal Newfoundland Constabulary Inspector Barry Constantine stated the police are investigating this incident. What is there to investigate? The Police officers made a mistake and need to own up to it.
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