Both Sides Are Wrong - Again!

In March of 2012 I posted a piece about a controversy in the Town of Middlesex, NY concerning the placement of sex offenders with developmental disabilities in a group home setting. The full post can be seen here.

Well the issue has come up again, with a vengeance. It seems the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities went forward with more placements of individuals listed as sex offenders in a number of towns and villages in the western NY area as a continued part of the closure of the Monroe Developmental Center. Here's a news report on the latest situation and protest in West Seneca, NY - click here.

Now remember, the first placements occurred in March of 2012 in Middlesex, NY. Although I've linked my entire post above, here is how I ended the article:

"So there is a dilemma for NYS - here they are trying to close a few institutions across the state where a fairly small number of these people reside. Questions need to be asked. If these individuals weren't in these institutions now, where would they be? Probably in the criminal justice system or unsupervised in the community I would guess. Now I'm a strong believer in the fact that no one benefits from an institutional setting. But how should these folks be dealt with? Where should they live? What supports do they need?

Here's my opinion for what it's worth. NYS should convene a set of experts, providers and community leaders, including elected officials and municipal leaders, to develop the plan that's needed for this population and for these closures. Plans are not going to be the same for every person or every community. It's going to take shared resources. Communities where placement and supports occur are going to need to have supports in place and this is going to take resources and communication. None of it will take place with finger pointing or blaming or position taking about who's right and who's wrong. It won't help for people to paint pictures of monsters either.

As I said early on, this really is an example of both sides being wrong. Hopefully some lessons have been learned and both sides will be a little more respectful of each other."

I know the Office for People With Developmental Disabilities was aware of these comments as were various statewide advocacy and provider organizations. It's sad that it seems no one listened, followed or considered any of these recommendations. Instead, the Governor's budget has and continues to include the reduction of behavioral health supports in local communities. In the end all of the communities involved as well as the people placed in these homes have suffered. Certainly the issue is difficult and complicated, but unless it's talked about openly and planned for appropriately there will be more harmful consequences down the road.