Category Archives: Autism and ID/DD
The Hunt for Alejandro Suarez: A Miami Man Decided to Move Out. A Massive Uproar Ensued.
BY CAROL MARBIN MILLER AND OMAR RODRÍGUEZ ORTIZ – OCTOBER 06, 2022 On July 4, Independence Day, Alejandro Suarez packed his laptop, camera and some clothes into a book bag. He placed a handwritten note in the glove box of his blue Honda Civic and left the car in the parking lot of a… Read More »
Family Cafe 2024 – DIAL Clinic Serves Up Brand New Supported Decision-Making Agreements
On June 14th and 15th, the Nova Southeastern University Disability Inclusion and Advocacy Law (DIAL) Clinic brought legal assistance to the largest convention of persons with disabilities in Florida – the Family Cafe. The Family Cafe is an annual convention where over 15,000 persons with disabilities and their families attend for an opportunity to… Read More »
4-F – Disabled and Unfit for Military Service
Can you be drafted in the military if you have a disability?
What constitutes a disability that would make you ineligible to be drafted?
Rios v. City of North Miami – Settled. Now What?
By: Matthew W. Dietz, Esq. On June 26, 2019 Arnaldo Rios-Soto’ family resolved its case against the City of North Miami and several of this police officers stemming from the incident on July 18, 2017, where Officer Jonathon Aledda shot at Arnaldo, and hit and injured his behavioral therapist, Charles Kinsey. Sitting cross-legged on… Read More »
Will Arnaldo Rios-Soto see Justice, or does Justice see Disability as Dangerous?
As a disability advocate, and as Arnaldo Rios-Soto’s lawyer, the trial of Officer Aledda is a watershed moment. Will Arnaldo be deemed to be inherently dangerous because he is different? Will there be a stereotype that because Arnaldo lives with a developmental disability, the fact that he was targeted was justified? I hope not.
AFTEREFFECT – A SWAT team, an autistic man, an American tragedy.
Aftereffect is a podcast produced by WYNC Studios, and hosted by Audrey Quinn. In this series, Audrey weaves Arnaldo Rios-Soto’s story and explains how Florida is ill-equipped to provide adequate community-based services for him, and what he went through. The synopsis of the eight episode series is as follows: In the summer of… Read More »
Arnaldo Rios Files His Lawsuit
Arnaldo Rios-Soto is the 27 year old Autistic Man who was involved in the North Miami shooting on July 18, 2016. Arnaldo was sitting in the middle of the street by his group home with his favorite toy truck, rocking back and forth. His hand movements and rocking behavior was self- soothing behavior that… Read More »
Litigation: Is Your Child A Runner?
Some children with autism, developmental or intellectual disabilities may wander off without any comprehension of possible danger. This might include running off from adults at school or in the community, leaving the classroom without permission, or leaving the house when the family is not looking. While most children are drawn to water, many autistic… Read More »
Fear should not be a barrier to full community integration
By: Matthew Dietz On August 18, 2015, Carl Starke, an Autistic man, was shot by three teenagers who were casing the Wal-Mart parking lot for cars to steal; they spotted Carl in the parking lot, and followed him home. They somehow noticed that he had a disability – he was marked as a “soft… Read More »
KARL HUNT – SUPERHERO OF FAIR HOUSING
Karl Hunt- SUPERHERO of Fair Housing. Karl stood up for his rights and held firm despite the hardship in doing so. He paved the way for many other persons with intellectual or developmental disabilities to live in their homes, and not to get bullied or evicted because of their disabilities.