DA: No bail for man with autism because of 'danger'
ASPartOfMe
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http://www.fox5ny.com/news/man-with-autism-no-bail-arson-case
Vinny lived at home with his family until he was 16. But then, the family suffered a devastating loss.
"His mom had a brain aneurysm and she suddenly died," Carozza said. "I had four kids at the time. It was just hard for me to take care of everybody”.
Since then, Vinny has been living at a few group homes.
But in October, according to court papers, while living at a home in Amenia in Dutchess County, Vinny admitted to the state police he set a cookbook on fire, put a battery and fork in the microwave and turned it on, and said he wanted to burn the house down and kill another resident.
Police arrested and charged Vinny with arson.
Vinny was supposed to have 24-hour supervision. He went to Sunmount, a state institution for the developmentally disabled, was evaluated, and eventually released to his father, who took care of him for months.
"He always does well at home," Carozza said. "He loves family."
Joe and Vinny went to court on Monday for what they thought was going to be an appearance. Instead, Vinny was arrested and taken back to jail.
"Sunmount released him and they weren't supposed to release him or they released him early," Carozza said. "And that's why they put him back in jail. It's very confusing."
The Duchess County District Attorney's Office released a statement to FOX 5 NY.
"In this circumstance there are few alternatives to bail. In this case, the defendant has a mental condition and presents a danger to himself and others, and as a result jail is the only available alternative at this time while he awaits placement in a mental health facility," the DA's office said.
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Kraichgauer
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Am I understanding this correctly, that neither anyone was killed, or that a building burned down? If so, then this is really a case of overestimating the danger posed by the suspect. I have to wonder if the DA wasn't running away with autism-phobia.
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-Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer
If he is practicing things that cause fire, and declaring a desire to kill someone, then I say he's a threat to others. Why wait until he does burn a house down, or kill someone?
Still, it's a pity there wasn't something other than a jail for the short term. Such as a hospital. And of course, it's tragic that mom died so young, leaving a family behind.
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A finger in every pie.
^^^because, in the USA, we do not jail people unless a crime has been committed or someone is awaiting trial having been accused of a crime. Some states permit holding a person for 72 hours because he is a threat to himself or others, but that would be in a hospital.
Think about it, a person has matches and wants to set fire to the house to kill his wife and family, cannot be arrested for that. Why should an autist be treated differently?
Wasn't there a movie about arresting people before they committed the crime?
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You can be arrested for threatening violence. A threat is considered 4th degree assault.
Bear in mind we haven't seen the kid in question.
Also he DID burn up a book and put inappropriate items in the microwave. That's different than your example of a man who simply "has" matches.
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A finger in every pie.
"said he wanted to burn the house down and kill another resident."
Was this in the context of "I'm having disturbing intrusive thoughts, please help me!" or "I'm now announcing my desire to commit murder and arson!"?
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I'm bored out of my skull, let's play a different game. Let's pay a visit down below and cast the world in flame.
"He went to Sunmount, a state institution for the developmentally disabled, was evaluated, and eventually released to his father, who took care of him for months."
This would seem to indicate that the institution considered him to no longer be a danger or at least not an immediate danger. We're missing information though. Arson and murderous intent aren't part of autism. Clearly he was having other mental/emotional health difficulties. So presumably the institution either considered them to be temporary or manageable in nature.
Was he continuing to receive mental health support? If so, did his support think that he was getting worse and report a danger? Had he quit receiving help? So many questions, so few answers.
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Sweetleaf
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From the article "In this circumstance there are few alternatives to bail. In this case, the defendant has a mental condition and presents a danger to himself and others, and as a result jail is the only available alternative at this time while he awaits placement in a mental health facility," the DA's office said.
Seems like his being held in jail is temporary till they find a place to send him, not saying I think its the best option but maybe there is not a hospital available to hold him at this time. Mental health resources and care are kind of lacking in this country. If there is not a hospital to take him right now it would make sense they might see jail being the best option for now to keep him supervised.
They didn't send him to prison, and sounds like that is not the intention.
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