Advocate for the disabled says lawmakers are turning a blind eye to abuse - by Kelly Fay After going public with a recording he says proves lawmakers are failing to investigate an agency they know is ineffective, an activist for the developmentally disabled is calling on two Assembly members to step down from their leadership positions. During an interaction between Michael Carey and Assemblyman Andrew Hevesi, the Queens Democrat explains that the Assembly leadership feels the agency overseeing the care of New Yorks disabled population is fraudulent, yet will not permit an investigation. Carey says the secretly taped conversation is more than enough cause for Sheldon Silver to step down from his position as Speaker of the Assembly and for Hevesi to be removed as Chair of the Assemblys Oversight and Investigations Committee. The recording focuses on the Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs — the agency launched last year to oversee reports of abuse within facilities serving the states disabled. The initiative touted a 24-hour-a-day hotline for reporting incidents that would allow for thorough investigations, but Carey says conditions are even worse than before the center was created. On the recording, Hevesi says lawmakers plan to start meeting with the agency in place of a full, public investigation, which Carey — whose autistic son was killed while in state care — rejects as insufficient. When Carey asks whether Silver, D-Manhattan, was unwilling to launch a full probe, Hevesi responded, He didnt say that to me, but I know the leadership is not willing to do that. The Justice Center has to be exposed for what it really is and the tape that I released clarified that the Oversight Committee and Assembly leadership are part of the problem, Carey said. Groundwork for the new agency was laid out in the 2012 Protection of People with Special Needs Act — a package of legislation passed shortly after a string of reports from The New York Times exposing abuse in institutions for the developmentally disabled. The Cuomo administration said the reforms would create the strictest standards in the nation for monitoring and preventing abuse. However, Carey says many — including Silver — had their doubts and no real change has resulted. He pointed out many employees were merely transferred from the Commission on Quality of Care and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities, the agency preceding the Justice Center. This agency is not new, Carey continued. The governor was deceitful — the governor outright lied. This is an entity that has been doing the exact same things — keeping the calls from 911, the police and the district attorneys. Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg, one of the Legislatures most vocal and involved advocates for those with special needs, said he also has significant questions about the Justice Center, but said he is saddened by Careys approach. This really impedes everything we were going to do — whos going to talk to him? Weisenberg asked. He has seriously undermined our shared goals of protecting New Yorks most vulnerable and has attacked the very people who were sincere in their efforts to help him, he continued. He attacked his allies. He added, the Assembly has demonstrated their strong support for the disabled, specifically noting the chambers role in restoring $120 million in proposed budgets cuts to the Office for People With Developmental Disabilities last year. Weisenberg, D-Long Beach, has worked closely with Carey in the past, including in 2007 when he authored and served as chief sponsor of a bill named after Careys son Jonathan, who was killed by a worker while in a state facility for the disabled. In a report from the New York Daily News, Hevesi also emphasized the Assemblys strong record of advocating for the special needs community. After the heartbreaking death of his son, we in the Assembly have worked closely with Michael and his family, he said. I have and will continue to monitor the Justice Center to ensure it is operating as intended. Hevesis office declined to make further comment. Since 2007, Carey has devoted his time to pushing for legislative reform to address what he describes as rampant abuse of the states most vulnerable citizens. Because of his long hours spent meeting with lawmakers, agency staff and others in and around the state Capitol, he says it is necessary for him to sometimes tape meetings in order to recall specific information. As far as taping goes, the only person that would have a problem with being taped is someone who has something to hide, Carey said. The year of his sons death, the state passed Jonathans law, mandating the notification of a residents family when an accident or injury occurs in a facility. But even with the requirement in place, Carey says most cases of abuse are investigated internally and seldom bring about real consequences. After several months of asking for Hevesi to challenge the Justice Center, he said he had no choice but to release the recording last week. Carey has exercised the Freedom of Information Law to receive a count of calls made to the Justice Center since its launch. According to documents provided by the Justice Center, nearly 42,000 calls were made to the abuse hotline between June 30 and Dec. 14, 2013. During the same period, 1,904 deaths were reported. Carey said Justice Center staff have told him there has been only one arrest made based on the reports. For the same period, Carey sent FOIL requests to county executives, district attorneys and numerous sheriffs departments across the state asking for a record of how many times the Justice Center has contacted local police. Representatives from at least 22 counties indicated they had no record of receiving a call during the six-month period. According to a correspondence between Carey and the Fulton County District Attorney on April 22, the office had never been contacted by the center to date. Another FOIL request by Carey prompted a response from Otsego County District Attorney John Muehl who said his office had also never been contacted by the agency. Instead, he said, the office corresponds directly with organizations in the community that provide special needs services. We do not rely on the Justice Center, Muehl wrote back. The Justice Center is a ridiculous joke. The Justice Center defines itself as a law enforcement body that works cooperatively with district attorneys offices across the state to investigate and vigorously prosecute all incidents of abuse and neglect reported ... which are criminal in nature. According to Diane Ward, Director of Communications for the Justice Center, the agency does not directly correspond with emergency response or law enforcement. Instead, those calling to report abuse are instructed to call 911. Afterwards, they are advised to call the center back once the safety of the individual has been secured. Carey says he is still waiting for a response from the agency to a two-month old FOIL request that requested a record of how many of the 41,934 allegations of abuse had been directed to law enforcement. A request for comment from the Assembly speakers office was not returned.
Posted on: Tue, 10 Jun 2014 21:39:38 +0000
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