Developmental center police investigating officer’s overtime
The in-house police force at California’s developmental centers is investigating one of its patrol officers for large overtime paychecks and an admission that he has slept on the job.Thomas Lopez, an...
View ArticleLawmaker calls for full audit of developmental center police
The state Assembly’s Republican leader yesterday called for an exhaustive audit of the police force at California’s board-and-care institutions for the severely developmentally disabled.In a letter to...
View ArticleQuestions surround handling of Taser assaults on disabled patients
Someone using a stun gun like a cattle prod assaulted a dozen patients at the Sonoma Developmental Center last fall, inflicting painful thermal burns on their buttocks, arms, legs and backs.The...
View ArticleState inquiry sought on Taser abuse against disabled patients
A prominent advocacy group for the disabled and parents of Sonoma Developmental Center patients are calling for an outside investigation into stun gun assaults last fall against a dozen patients at the...
View ArticleState lawmakers order audit of developmental center police
Lawmakers directed the California State Auditor yesterday to examine the in-house police force at the state’s board-and-care institutions for the severely developmentally disabled.The force, called the...
View ArticleDevelopmental centers seek new police chief
The in-house police force at California’s institutions for the developmentally disabled is searching for a new chief as scrutiny of its work on criminal investigations intensifies.After two years in...
View ArticleReport slams state institution for neglect, weak oversight
California’s largest institution for the developmentally disabled risks losing millions of dollars in federal funding because of poor medical care and widespread failures to prevent abuse and...
View ArticleAttorney general files charges in police overtime case
The California attorney general’s office filed criminal charges this week against two former officials at the state developmental centers’ in-house police force for allegedly embezzling more than...
View ArticleBills to reform developmental center police reach governor
Two bills that would require outside police and advocatesto be informed about alleged crimes against the developmentally disabled at California’s board-and-care institutions have reached Gov. Jerry...
View ArticleRelease of uncensored developmental center citations ordered
A state court today ordered the California Department of Public Health to disclose uncensored copies of dozens of patient abuse cases at institutions for the developmentally disabled.The ruling came in...
View ArticleBrown signs bills on developmental center abuse
UPDATE, Sept. 28, 2012: This story updates to include comment from the Department of Developmental Services.Gov. Jerry Brown signed two bills yesterday to require California’s developmental centers to...
View ArticleInfographic: After claims of sexual assault, little is done
Patients at California’s board-and-care centers for the developmentally disabled have accused caretakers of molestation and rape 36 times during the past four years. Documents obtained by California...
View ArticlePolice ignored, mishandled sex assaults reported by disabled
Patients at California’s board-and-care centers for the developmentally disabled have accused caretakers of molestation and rape 36 times during the past four years, but police assigned to protect them...
View ArticleVideo: In Jennifer's Room
In August 2006, caregivers at the Sonoma Developmental Center found dark blue bruises shaped like handprints covering the breasts of a patient named Jennifer. She accused a staff member of molestation,...
View ArticleExplainer: Investigating sexual abuse in California’s developmental centers
Patients at California's five board-and-care centers for the developmentally disabled have accused caretakers and other employees of rape and molestation 36 times during the past four years.The Office...
View Article'In Jennifer's Room' tells chilling story of abuse while protecting family's...
“I feel bad for the people who have no one to fight for them. There are a lot of them; they don't have any family. I told them when we were (there), 'You know, I was a hands-on mom, and I fought you...
View ArticleCalls grow for local police to take cases at developmental centers
Sonoma County’s top prosecutor has joined with advocates for the developmentally disabled in calling for local police to take charge of criminal investigations of patient abuse at California’s...
View ArticleState threatens to shut down disability center amid patient abuse
The state's largest board-and-care center for the severely disabled lost its primary license to operate today, after repeatedly exposing patients to abuse and shoddy medical care.State regulators cited...
View ArticleState disability center forfeits funding over abuse
California's largest board-and-care center for the developmentally disabled will surrender more than $1 million a month in federal funding for failures to protect patients from abuse and provide...
View ArticlePublic forum: What’s the future of Sonoma’s developmental center?
California Watch is inviting the public to share its thoughts, insights and experiences about the troubled Sonoma Developmental Center, the state’s largest board-and-care facility for the severely...
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