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SLC cop shoots boy with Autism

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Neonmoon

Neonmoon 38130

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https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/08/us/salt-lake-city-police-shoot-boy-autism-trnd/index.html

 

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A 13-year-old boy was seriously injured after being shot by a police officer in Salt Lake City on Friday night, according to his mother.

Golda Barton said that her son Linden Cameron, who has Asperger syndrome, experienced a "mental breakdown" earlier in the day. It had been her first day back at work in nearly a year, and Linden was having trouble coping, she confirmed to CNN in an email.

Barton also confirmed she called the police and asked for a crisis intervention team to help her manage the situation and get her son treatment.

"I said, 'Look, he's unarmed. He doesn't have anything. He just gets mad and he starts yelling and screaming,'" Barton told CNN affiliate KUTV about her call to police. "He's a kid he's trying to get attention. He doesn't know how to regulate."

When police arrived, Barton said her son ran away. She told KUTV that she heard someone yell "get down on the ground" three times, followed by several gunshots.

"Why didn't they tase him? Why didn't they shoot him with a rubber bullet?" Barton told the station. "He's a small child. Why don't you just tackle him? You are big police officers with massive amounts of resources."

Salt Lake City Police Sgt. Keith Horrocks said in a news conference on Saturday that officers had been called to the area because a boy was having a "psychological episode and had made threats to some folks with the weapon."

he boy fled and as police chased after him, one officer fired their weapon and struck the child, Horrocks said. Officers provided medical aid to the boy until medical personnel arrived, Horrocks said. He was then taken to a local hospital, according to police.

Linden's injuries include damage to his shoulder, ankles, intestines, bladder and colon, as well as nerve damage, Barton told CNN.

It is not clear whether the boy actually had a weapon, or exactly what threats police were said to be responding to.

Barton told CNN her son was unarmed. Detective Greg Wilking, a spokesperson for the Salt Lake City Police Department, told CNN on Tuesday that he could not speak specifically to whether the boy had a weapon or "what the officers' perceived threats were," and that those questions would be determined by the investigation.

"Mom can say whatever she wants, but there's this investigation that has to happen and this process that has to take place," Wilking said.

The incident is being investigated by a team consisting primarily of officers from the West Valley City Police Department, according to Wilking. West Valley City is a suburb of Salt Lake City, both of which are part of Salt Lake County.

Once that investigation is complete, the information will be turned into the district attorney's office, who will conduct their own investigation, Wilking said. The city also has a civilian review board that investigates complaints regarding police conduct.

"While the full details of this incident are yet to be released as an investigation takes place, I will say that I am thankful this young boy is alive and no one else was injured," Salt Lake City Mayor Eric Mendenhall said in a statement, according to KUTV.

"No matter the circumstances, what happened on Friday night is a tragedy and I expect this investigation to be handled swiftly and transparently for the sake of everyone involved."

 

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washparkhorn

washparkhorn 9939

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Preventing Tragic Accidents

Police officers are trained to read and interpret body language in order to determine the seriousness of a situation. However, someone with autism could actually exhibit very misleading body language, including something called “stimming”.

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The purpose of autism training for police officers is more than just providing education or autism awareness. Training equips law enforcement with the tools they need to make necessary changes in behavior and operations. 

“It’s not that we want police officers to be able to diagnose autism on the street. We want the light bulb to go off so that they can think, ‘Maybe this person has autism,’ and proceed accordingly,” said Danny Openden, president and CEO of Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center.

With autism diagnoses being incredibly high, it is far too common that an officer will encounter someone on the spectrum for this matter to be ignored.

“When you look at the numbers right now, we know that about one in every 54 people are somewhere on that spectrum. So it’s not a matter of if an officer is going to deal with somebody on the spectrum, it’s just a matter of when,” Lon Bartel, a retired Valley officer in Arizona, said.

The proper training also ensures that officers will have the ability to identify and handle the diverse range of characteristics and behaviors that come with the disorder. 

“We’ve got people with autism with no communication whatsoever, and we’ve got people that are highly verbal but miss a lot of the social cues. And so a police officer might be talking to somebody who’s nonverbal and they’re not responding and that sounds or looks like noncompliance,” Openden said. 

Openden also explains that a nonverbal individual might quickly reach into their pocket for a communication device, but to a police officer this could easily look like they are reaching for a gun. If the officer lacks knowledge and training, the end result could be fatal. 

 

https://ibcces.org/blog/2020/07/21/autism-training-law-enforcement-demand-growing/

 

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jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 46492

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9 minutes ago, WBT said:

Don't call the cops

 

8 minutes ago, Anastasis said:

NEVER.CALL.THE.COPS

 

While I won't argue that point one way or another, she did ask for a "crisis management team".  She explained the boy's condition to the cops -- the failure to handle the situation correctly is all on them.

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Deej

Deej 77202

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4 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

 

 

While I won't argue that point one way or another, she did ask for a "crisis management team".  She explained the boy's condition to the cops -- the failure to handle the situation correctly is all on them.

She explained it to the dispatcher, who may or may not have explained it to the cops. 

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BrazilHorn

BrazilHorn 6659

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This is why when folks say "Defund the police" that it shouldn't trigger outrage about public safety.

So many needless deaths have stemmed from cops killing mentally ill people. To be fair to cops they should not be used for this type of work. A mother who cannot control her 13 year old autistic child shouldn't be having to call the police to do it for her.

Take some $ that go to cops and put it towards social workers/mental health professionals that could handle these types of calls initially.

And before anyone throws out the "he's 13, how big could be be?" my son is 13 and is 5'10.5" and could if he was in a meltdown absolutely hurt my wife (no pics) if he was inclined to. So 13 in some cases can be as big as an adult and certainly bigger than the average mom is.

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0xdeadbeef

0xdeadbeef 1654

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There's a pretty big disconnect from what the mom says she said and what the cops say they were told.   The truth could make this story go either way.  

Quote

officers had been called to the area because a boy was having a "psychological episode and had made threats to some folks with the weapon."

 

Cops need to release the 911 call justifying that statement.

 

 

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0xdeadbeef

0xdeadbeef 1654

Posted
Posted (edited)
3 minutes ago, NotActuallyALonghorn said:

I mean, we're guilty of threatening to call the cops on our three year old when she goes into full blown tantrum mode. There's even a handy fake 911 call app you can get. But I wouldn't actually call them.

Looking into your future I see a 6 year old calling 911 on you because you won't give them food*.

 

*candy

Edited by 0xdeadbeef
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BehoId, The Underminer!

BehoId, The Underminer! 11669

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12 minutes ago, 0xdeadbeef said:

There's a pretty big disconnect from what the mom says she said and what the cops say they were told.   The truth could make this story go either way.  

 

Cops need to release the 911 call justifying that statement.

 

 

and then the subsequent video of the 90 lb 13 year old holding the weapon

and then the subsequent subsequent video of him running away from the cops while steadily holding a mirror so that he can fire the weapon backwards at them while he runs.

i suspect the cops will be vindicated.

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Anastasis

Anastasis 23514

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31 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

While I won't argue that point one way or another, she did ask for a "crisis management team".  She explained the boy's condition to the cops -- the failure to handle the situation correctly is all on them.

I of course agree that the failure is completely on the side of the cops.  You should be able to call the cops and have them assist you in this kind of situation.  But you can't. Don't call them. Ever. 

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wildcat09

wildcat09 29453

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10 minutes ago, TornACL said:

Fuck the police. 

The biggest mistake we as citizens made was to let the atrocious state of our police departments be framed into a racial issue. 

This is a societal issue. And again, fuck the police.

I’d say the bigger mistake is in thinking that because something is disproportionately a racial issue it isn’t also a societal issue. See also, covid. 

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Anastasis

Anastasis 23514

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3 hours ago, jimmyjazz said:

It's possible that dispatch sent the cops as opposed to EMS.  9-1-1 just gets you to the tip of the spear.  What do you suggest one does when there is a real crisis going down and one needs help?  Apply for a federal grant?

Go to the fire station or ask for a roll out on medical basis.  Do not ever ask the cops to bring their solutions. I literally sit across from the dinner table and tell my kids to never call the cops and find a fireman if they need help.  They mostly just keep eating their enchiladas but I hope some seeds find ground. 

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scottsins

scottsins 1997

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3 hours ago, jimmyjazz said:

It's possible that dispatch sent the cops as opposed to EMS.  9-1-1 just gets you to the tip of the spear.  What do you suggest one does when there is a real crisis going down and one needs help?  Apply for a federal grant?

Not to nitpick, but in most jurisdictions, the CIT's are made up of cops with additional training.  In Bell County, the CIT is a special assignment of the Sheriff's office.  Maybe they are an outlier where I work, but I have primarily seen this situation go the other way when the CIT is involved.

I think your theory may be correct and there is some gap with the reporting/dispatch process.  That, or maybe there was another call to 911 from neighbors or something?

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jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 46492

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2 hours ago, Anastasis said:

Go to the fire station or ask for a roll out on medical basis.  Do not ever ask the cops to bring their solutions. I literally sit across from the dinner table and tell my kids to never call the cops and find a fireman if they need help.  They mostly just keep eating their enchiladas but I hope some seeds find ground. 

That's fine, and I guess your point is that most people don't understand this, but the immediate reaction for the vast majority of the population is going to be to call 911 and ask for help.  They don't know any better and they don't know any alternatives.  I think our efforts might be better-placed to FIX THE FUCKING SHOOT FIRST ASK QUESTIONS LATER POLICE TRAINING.

Not that you necessarily disagree.

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jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 46492

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1 hour ago, scottsins said:

Not to nitpick, but in most jurisdictions, the CIT's are made up of cops with additional training.  In Bell County, the CIT is a special assignment of the Sheriff's office.  Maybe they are an outlier where I work, but I have primarily seen this situation go the other way when the CIT is involved.

I think your theory may be correct and there is some gap with the reporting/dispatch process.  That, or maybe there was another call to 911 from neighbors or something?

It was my understanding that, in most jurisdictions, one could become a dispatcher without law enforcement or medical training.  This is straight from a Round Rock firehouse captain and a recent AISD grad going into EMS service.  

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ChiTownDoc

ChiTownDoc 21233

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2 hours ago, conVINCEd said:

I’m not one to defend cops, and I’m not defending them here, but a lot of you are underestimating what a 13 y.o. Kid on the far end of the spectrum is capable of physically.  Once they begin to hit puberty, it can get REALLY fucking ugly.

Yep.  Most med students are given a crash course on their psych rotations on how to handle these situations.  It’s amazing thousands of students, counselors, social workers, psychologists, and psychiatrists manage to not die while not being armed.  
 

Oh that’s right, they’re not stupid motherfuckers. 

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Guest

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Posted (edited)
11 hours ago, MissingInAction said:

I'd leave slorch out of that assessment. 

Yep.  Not a UT graduate.

 

Willing to take a life quiz or compare notes/ results any fucking day.  But nah, we disagree on some political bullshit, so I'm dumb...in your assessment of things.   Your opinion matters not.

FWIW, I am staunchly in the "Accountability for police actions/  fire their fucking bosses" corner.  Go after the leadership, and expectations will miraculously change...

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Sawbonz

Sawbonz 27791

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15 hours ago, washparkhorn said:

"As of October 9th, 2017, the Washington Post found that 768 people have been killed by law enforcement and one out of every four deaths involved a mental health disability."

https://autisticadvocacy.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Autism-and-Safety-Pt-1.pdf

 

Pretty sure 95+ % of those shootings involved a mental health disability 

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Bevo&Pevo

Bevo&Pevo 5395

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15 hours ago, gmr548 said:

Also "mom can say whatever she wants but..." is up there in terms of tone deaf statements of the year.

I swear it's like you have to fail an IQ test to get hired as a cop.

I personally know 3 guys who are in law enforcement.  As far hunting, fishing,  BBQ they are cool dudes, however none of the 3 ever held a steady job until they became the law. In times past; being a teacher or lawman was a respected profession.  I suppose for a few it still is.  Most folks I know wouldn't want either job.  I advised my kids not to go into either field.

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irishtexan

irishtexan 11535

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Posted
10 hours ago, conVINCEd said:

I’m not one to defend cops, and I’m not defending them here, but a lot of you are underestimating what a 13 y.o. Kid on the far end of the spectrum is capable of physically.  Once they begin to hit puberty, it can get REALLY fucking ugly.

and yet, the rest of your post goes on to defend the cops.

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