Epilepsy Talk
Epilepsy Abuse and Civil Rights | July 17, 2010
The following letter was written to local Legislators, Health & Human Service Agencies, The Office for Civil Rights and selected members of the President’s Cabinet…
Dear President Obama:
Re: Epilepsy Abuse and Civil Rights
I’m sure you’re aware of the incident when Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’s nephew was beaten by hospital security in La. while in the throes of a seizure.
Then there’s the Pennsylvania woman who was handcuffed, shackled and restrained during an epileptic seizure because the police suspected her of being on cocaine.
There are hundreds of stories like these in news reports and the media. That, I suppose is good for public awareness. But it’s horrific for the patients’ who are being abused and denied of their civil rights.
Is there no education program about how to recognize the signs of epilepsy for police, first responders and hospital security personnel?
Is there no protocol? It is not part of their job eligibility, training or internships. Not only is that a gross oversight, but it can prove fatal for those who suffer from epilepsy.
We do not need any more lawsuits…we do not want any deaths…all we want is a dose of humanity and our American civil rights.
Please advise.
To reach the Executive Office of the President and its officials click: http://efa.capwiz.com/efa/dbq/officials/agencies/?id=4866&dir=efa&command=depresult&submit.x=3&submit.y=14
For a Congressional Directory, go to: http://efa.capwiz.com/efa/directory/congdir.tt
And the Department of Health & Human Services, plus the Office for Civil Rights can be reached here: http://efa.capwiz.com/efa/dbq/officials/agencies/?id=4185&dir=efa&command=depresult&submit.x=17&submit.y=19
Do your part. Speak up…speak out!
Tags: epilepsy abuse, Health & Human Services, Legislators, Office for Civil Rights, President's Cabinet
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About the author
The way I show that I have epilepsy is my Medic Alert bracelet.
It is so sad that we are treated that way by officials. Here in CA, it is shoot first and ask questions later. Today the police shot someone and now are looking for a gun. They cannot find it. There was no gun!! It happens to us too.
We are accused of being drunk, I stagger a lot. Like you said, we are accused of being on illegal drugs.
Comment by Ruth Brown — July 18, 2010 @ 9:05 AM
Right. How about that guy who was shot in the back by BART cops in California? And they call it the FRATERNAL Order of Police? Hmmmmm…
Comment by Phylis Feiner Johnson — July 18, 2010 @ 8:23 PM
Phylis, in CA that is quite common with the police. They shoot a person and then put on admistrave leave. In other words, they get a vacation.
They do not care if a person might have epilepsy. They do not check first. California is notorius for this. They also shot a person who was retatarded, they thought he had a gun. They knew better.
We do not have “civil rights” in CA. That is the way I feel.
Comment by Ruth Brown — July 21, 2010 @ 5:38 AM
So PLEASE, paste the letter above into a letter of your own and write to your legislators. We can’t take this sitting down. Every voice heard, helps!
There are links above to direct you to the appropriate people…
Comment by Phylis Feiner Johnson — July 21, 2010 @ 7:36 PM
My status got me when I was driving once. I bumped into a cop car instead of head on with a truck that steered over the double orange lane. The cop was upset that I made such a choice. The cop said I should have hit the truck head on rather than hit his car.
All went well until I told him I had epilepsy, then he found his way to get back. He put me in handcuffs, called an ambulance, and got a couple of his buddies to say they witnessed a seizure. They weren’t quite sure what a seizure was so they added some stereotypes, some fabricated axis III, and fabricated a full verbal confession (including claimed apology) to a grand-mal seizure…It got so stupid I thought it the police report would become invalid on its own. However, when six or seven of his buddies say they were there and saw it happen, poof! anything becomes the truth…
The common public doesn’t care. I hear some real cute stories when they all say they “know someone” and then share their fears. For me, it will take the cost of a real lawyer and a day in court to fix the problem.
I’ll send the letter and get a page of cut-and-paste. This might require one of those court cases documenting abuse to achieve change.
Comment by Steve — January 4, 2011 @ 7:39 AM
Steve, you probably shouldn’t have been driving with epilepsy.
But that being said, there are tons of cops and first responders that don’t have a clue about epilepsy, they’re afraid of it, so they do what they know how to do…consider you guilty until proven innocent.
I had a very fulfilling experience at a school Health & Wellness fair. It was well attended by all sorts of people, including police personnel, fireman, and a special ed teacher.
I asked the Sargent when he knew about epilepsy. And he admitted he knew almost nothing. Same with the Fire Chief.
But the Police Sergent took scads of educational materials away and said he’d have a special staff meeting with his officers. (Not much, but it’s a beginning.)
I asked the special ed teacher how many colleagues knew what to do in case of a seizure. (Of course, she knew plenty!) She said probably no one except for her knew what to do and promised to pass out first aid info to all of them.
I think education starts with public service people, teachers, nurses, first responders, even certain hospital personnel. And until then, we’re SOL.
Comment by Phylis Feiner Johnson — January 5, 2011 @ 6:44 AM
Steve, I do not drive for that reason. In CA, you had better not hit a cop’s car whether you have epilepsy or it was just an accident. You wind up in jail.
It is also quite common in CA to shoot and ask questions later.
Ruth
Comment by ruth brown — January 7, 2011 @ 3:01 AM