CPD Alleged Assault of Autistic Teen Calls Attention to Specialized Training Need

By Anthonia Akitunde in News on Apr 25, 2009 8:45PM

The alleged assault of a 16-year-old autistic teenager at his family’s fast-food restaurant in Pilsen Friday sheds light on the need for specialized police training on how to deal with special needs citizens in the city, family members said. Oscar Guzman, 16, suffered a gash to his head that required eight stitches, his family said. Police refused to provide details of the incident but the family shared their account of the confrontation, according to Chicago Breaking News. Guzman’s family worries the teen, who has the mental capacity of a 5th-grader, will be emotionally scarred from the incident, the news report said.

Guzman was approached by two police officers in a cruiser as he stood on the sidewalk Wednesday night, taking a break from his job at his family’s restaurant, his family said. The officers asked him questions he did not understand, which prompted the teen to avert eye contact and walk away, Guzman’s sister reportedly said. His family said police went after him, causing him to run back to the restaurant, screaming, “I’m a special boy!” Guzman’s parents protested when the police followed him inside, saying he had “special needs” when an officer allegedly hit Guzman in the head with a baton.

The incident happened despite Chicago’s Police Departments recent efforts to provide sworn officers training in interaction with the mentally disabled. More than 1,150 officers out of 13,500 have received 40-hours of training as part of a program called Crisis Intervention Team, an effort to help officers recognize the special needs of the mentally disabled. According to a study released in 1993, people with developmental disabilities are seven times more likely to come in contact with police enforcement. [Chicago Breaking News]