The Daily Mail on the death of Kelly Thomas after a vicious beating by several Fullerton California Police Officers quotes his grieving father Ron Thomas,
'The only thing we have left of our son is the blood in the gutter, that's all we have left'
It is more than a little sad...to have the life of this man ended by a handful of people who have a duty to protect and serve...Police Officers have a tough job; but I bet that people with a diagnosis of schizophrenia who are homeless, probably have a tough time getting through a given day without being bullied, or otherwise mistreated, and having enough to eat; among other things...
Having a psychiatric diagnosis of schizophrenia puts a person at an increased risk of experiencing mistreatment; and being victimized by violent crime. A person with a diagnosis can lose their liberty without Procedural Due Process of Law and be forced to get "treatment" that can cause disability or take their life. "Treatment" usually consists of being forced to take neuroleptic drugs to "medically treat" their symptoms---These drugs have an abysmal safety and efficacy record---certainly not one that would suggest they are helpful to more than about 25% of people with a diagnosis of schizophrenia.
Having a psychiatric diagnosis of schizophrenia puts a person at an increased risk of experiencing mistreatment; and being victimized by violent crime. A person with a diagnosis can lose their liberty without Procedural Due Process of Law and be forced to get "treatment" that can cause disability or take their life. "Treatment" usually consists of being forced to take neuroleptic drugs to "medically treat" their symptoms---These drugs have an abysmal safety and efficacy record---certainly not one that would suggest they are helpful to more than about 25% of people with a diagnosis of schizophrenia.
Bad cops who aren't weeded out by the recruitment and screening process, are a liability to Law Enforcement in general, and to society at large. It remains to be seen what the Fullerton Police Department and the prosecutor's office will determine is appropriate in this particular homicide by cop case. Ultimately, I hope that these officers will be held accountable. A vicious attack by a group of out of control Police Officers, ultimately cost Kelly Thomas his life. When the person is killed by an group of out of control Police Officers it is a particularly heinous crime. It is crucial to hold those responsible accountable for their actions.
Why are crimes committed which victimize people with a psychiatric diagnosis not considered to be as serious as crimes committed BY a person with a psychiatric diagnosis? It is yet another way that, in effect, our society holds those with a psychiatric diagnosis to a different standard.
Why are crimes committed which victimize people with a psychiatric diagnosis not considered to be as serious as crimes committed BY a person with a psychiatric diagnosis? It is yet another way that, in effect, our society holds those with a psychiatric diagnosis to a different standard.
" I am sure that we will recognize that there are some things in our society,
some things in our world, to which we should never be adjusted."
Martin Luther King, Jr.
I am sure that mistreatment of vulnerable people with a psychiatric diagnosis
is something we should never become adjusted to...
Read the Daily Mail article and watch the video here.
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