Nonverbal man with severe autism jailed as last resort

PASCO, Wash.(KEPR) - A Franklin County man went to jail in late January, even though county prosecutors don't want him in there.

The 18-year-old man has low-functioning autism and is non-verbal.

But it's his violent outbursts that are leaving his family, law enforcement leaders and advocates stumped.

They claim there's nowhere else to put the man we're calling Joseph (to protect his siblings' privacy).

Disabilities advocates say the state of Washington is facing a housing crisis -- a shortage of residential providers for individuals with disabilities.

The incarcerated man's mother, we're calling her Elisabeth, says she's at the end of her rope.

She says Joseph has "episodes", becoming very violent, a danger to himself and those around him.

The single mother says a normal day includes multiple calls to Pasco Police for help.

"Basically there's nothing else," she says. "There's no place he can go."

Elisabeth says Child Protective Services (CPS) visited and gave her an ultimatum: keep Joseph, away from his siblings, "Otherwise we're going to come and pick them up".

On Jan. 24, Joseph, asked to go to the hospital before one of his violent outbursts.

She agreed, she felt it would be safer there than near the children.

Elisabeth says she talked to the nurses before leaving.

"They agreed, they put him in the hospital and gave him some medication," she says, adding he was there for two an a half days before he hurt somebody and was sent to jail.

Now she says he's in a place he shouldn't be, and they're out of options.

"He remains in jail because we don't have an appropriate place to put him," says Franklin County deputy prosecuting attorney Daniel Stovern. "Somewhere he would be safe and where the community would be safe."

Stovern says the jail is not an appropriate place for the young man but his mother is out of options.

"If an appropriate place became available we would release him immediately," he says.

Donna Tracy, Manager of Advocacy at The Arc of Tri-Cities, says Elisabeth has been asking for help for years.

"We're seeing lots of families facing crisis. They need placement for their children or they're in current placement and they're being told to come pick their child up," she says.

Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA) is the state agency existing solely to help families and individuals with developmental disabilities; they're responsible for helping provide supports to help an individual throughout their lives.

Supports include:

• job coaching and training,
• in-home care support and help -based on the level of need
• provide residential options if they no longer live with their family even though 80% of people with developmental disabilities live at home with families
• Washington State Constitution gives individuals with developmental disabilities the right to live in an institution if needed.

Elisabeth says it's not happening.

Tracy says community-based residential services for individuals with developmental disabilities are experiencing crisis level staffing shortages due to a lack of sufficient funding from the state.

She says the minimum wage is rising every year but reimbursement from the state to community providers is not keeping up.

This means residential providers who are experts in the field are only being paid a little above minimum wage and take their skills elsewhere.

Elisabeth tells Action News she kept her son home as long as she could, because he's her son and "that's what you do".

"He's really sweet, he's a sweet person," Elisabeth says, smiling. "He tells you he loves you and he's really caring."

"The only place in town ended up being the Franklin County jail," Tracy says. "Thank heavens they're so accommodating, but this shouldn't be our answer. This could be any one of our children."

She says legislators and Gov. Inslee "need to make it a priority."

In Olympia, a bill with potential to remedy the situation currently in front of the ways-and-means committee. More on that below.

Action News reached out to the Developmental Disabilities Administration but hadn't heard back by the story's deadline.

MORE INFORMATION:

• SSB 6419 - Concerning implementation of the recommendations of the December 2019 report from the William D. Ruckelshaus center regarding residential habilitation center clients.
• HB 2572 - Concerning implementation of the recommendations of the December 2019 report from the William D. Ruckelshaus center regarding residential habilitation center clients.