Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Monday, February 23, 2015

Daniel Ten Oever, boy with autism, put in handcuffs for throwing chairs

The parents of a nine-year-old boy who has autism are angry Ottawa police handcuffed their son after he reportedly threw chairs inside the principal's office.

Officials told Daniel Ten Oever's parents, Dan Ten Oever and mother Stephanie Huck, that the boy threw the chairs in St. Jerome Catholic School on Thursday.

A female Ottawa police officer then responded and put handcuffs on Daniel to restrain him, the parents told CBC News.

"I've lost faith in the Catholic school board and St. Jerome school. We're not putting our son back in school," Dan Ten Oever said.

"We're probably going to, most likely, going to change him into the public school board. We're really sad because this is our son and we're trying to protect him."

Ten Oever said he trusts his son because the boy does not understand how to lie, due to his autism. There is a disconnect, though, between his son's version of the story and the school board's.

Staff 'acted appropriately,' official says

The board said the principal requested the handcuffs be removed when arriving in the room, and the officer did so right away. Ten Oever told his parents the principal asked police to put him in handcuffs.

School Supt. Mary Donaghy also said the staff "acted appropriately to ensure the safety of everyone involved."

Police would not comment on the incident specifically, but confirmed they responded to St. Jerome school and no charges were laid.

Spokesman Marc Soucy said police handcuff anyone deemed by an officer to be violent or a danger to themselves, others or the police. Neither the age nor size of a person changes that policy, he said.

Police would investigate if a complaint is launched against the officer, Soucy added.

Original Article
Source: CBC
Author: cbc

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