Things to read #6
Announces 2009 NY Budget Proposal
- Researchers and critics say many children with developmental disabilities and autism have been injured or traumatized by being placed in school "seclusion rooms". Teachers say they are educating many more students with disabilities now than ever before, and are not equipped to handle the crush of demands on their time and attention, according to this report from CNN. nill rn Police Search for Robber
- According to Fox News, Richard LaPoint, aged 60, from Epping, New Hamphire, died last week when the power to his oxygen tank was cut off during an ice storm.

- A woman from Derry in Northern Ireland is campaigning for a Bill of Rights that meets the needs of everyone. As reported in the Derry Journal, Elizabeth Zammit, who uses a wheelchair, says "I want to see a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland that will look after me and other people living with a disability. I need to be able to count on basic services like accessible transport, but right now it's too difficult and often not worth the hassle and humiliation. The Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland should set out, in a clear and understandable way, the rights that I am entitled to. Some of the barriers I face every day could be solved by a Bill of Rights – and I'm not alone. One in five people in Northern Ireland has a disability."

- To check out part 5 and 6 of Kay Olsen's "When Wheels Make the Man" series see here and here.

- A woman in Waco Texas has been placed on probation for 10 years after she unintentionally allowed a man with developmental disabilities she was caring for sleep the night outdoors on a fire-ant mound, the Associated Press reports.

- This article from the LA times reports on a Cleveland woman who has recently had a face transplant. It’s the most extensive such operation ever performed and the first in the U.S.

- A 54-year-old Minnesota man is being subjected to electro-convulsive therapy against his will, and is going before a judge in St Paul on December 16 to try and stop the court-ordered procedure. According to this report from Minnesota Public Radio, Ray Sandford has been getting ECT every week or two since May. For more information about Ray, see this post by Kay over at Gimp Parade, and MindFreedom International.