It’s an accepted fact that if police in the United States underwent training programs like officers in Norway do, individuals like Alton Sterling and Philando Castile would still be alive. As it is, few officers know how to de-escalate situations rather than react out of fear, and that’s a frightening prospect for all – especially individuals belonging to ethnic minorities and those with special needs.
Aware of this dire reality, the mom of an extremely autistic 28-year-old man recently took matters into her own hands to ensure cops don’t shoot – or kill – her son.
A couple of weeks ago, 28-year-old Zachary was almost killed by cops when he went into a “rage” after neighbors called the cops because they were concerned. When the officers arrived at the home outside of Las Vegas, they attempted to restrain him by kneeling on his chest, despite protests by his adoptive mom, Judy McKim.
At one point, an officer reached for his gun because Zach was “fighting for his life.”
After the situation calmed down, Zachary was taken to a hospital and held there for two days. While no charges were filed against him, the incident frightened Judy. Furthermore, the officers never wrote in their report that they touched Zachary.
Desperate, Judy decided it was up to her to protect Zach, who has the brain function of a toddler. He doesn’t understand what cops are, doesn’t know what a gun is, and still lives in diapers. To ‘spell it out’ for police, she painted the following on her garage door:
She told KNTV:
“I wanted to make sure that they knew everything. That he is still in diapers, doesn’t understand words, doesn’t understand what a gun is. He’s autistic, he doesn’t know what’s happening. He doesn’t know what police is.”
“I don’t like doing this. I’m embarrassed. I’m embarrassed that everyone knows, I’m embarrassed that I’m on TV. I’m embarrassed that you guys are seeing my life, but that’s reality.”
“It scared me this bad,” she added.
Since this news has gone viral, the Henderson police department has reached out to Judy to investigate the incident further.
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