16 y/o Bus thief may have autism/Aspergers now is young offenders facility

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-----Original Message-----From: Marr Family Sent: Wednesday, November 01, 2006 9:52 AMTo: info@...Subject: Bus thief may have autism/AspergersTo whom it may concern:The Orlando, Fla. boy charged in the bus theft in Florida, who is fascinatedby buses, likely has autism or Asperger syndrome -- AS. Yet no one hastwigged to this fact?See article below.Meanwhile he is in a young offender's facility. It's heartbreaking.The boy's name is Calvin , and he is Grade 8.If you agree autism should be considered as a factor here, here is thecontact info for the police force that has charged him:Seminole County Sheriff's Office F. Eslinger, Sheriff 100 N Bush BoulevardSanford 32773-6706Toll Free 866.FLA-SCSO () Email: scso@.... BobakToronto, OntarioCanadaThe_marrs@...Wednesday > November 1 > 2006 Boy with bus 'fascination' busted again'He drove really well': Passenger calls Orlando police when he notices nofare box Vallis National Post Wednesday, November 01, 2006A 15-year-old Florida boy appears to have a strange fixation with stealingbuses.Ritchie Calvin , a Grade 8 student in Orlando, has stolen at leastthree of the vehicles this year -- two tour buses and a city bus. He droveone of the tour buses 275 kilometres south to West Palm Beach in February,says his father, Archie Bell.Ritchie took his latest ride around 8 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 28. Accordingto the Seminole County Sheriff's Office, he got behind the wheel of adecommissioned Orlando city bus from the Central Florida Fairgrounds andtrundled along the regular Route 39.He picked up three passengers waiting at stops along the way and collectedfares.One of the passengers, Jeff , noticed the driver looked suspiciouslyyoung. He was wearing baggy denim shorts and a dark T-shirt, not a uniform.When Mr. realized the bus did not have a security camera or a farebox, he called 911 on his cellphone."So you're on a bus, there's a 16-year-old driver there and he's takingmoney from people -- is that what you're telling me?" the 911 operator askedMr. , who was on his way to get a haircut.In an interview, Mr. said he stayed on the bus so he could helppolice locate it. Ritchie was an impeccable driver, he said -- courteous tocustomers and mindful of the route."I really just think he wants to be a bus driver and got it in his head thathe was going to prove to everyone that he could drive the bus," Mr. said. "He drove really well."Twenty kilometres into the journey a police cruiser pulled in front of thebus at a stop. The boy obligingly cut the bus's engine, then restarted it bypushing a button so he could open the door and let police officer board.Mr. said Ritchie seemed "bewildered" and did not understand he haddone anything wrong. When the officer asked him where the bus driver was, hesimply replied, "I am the bus driver."The boy still did not comprehend he had broken the law after he washandcuffed and an officer informed him he was being charged with vehicletheft. He told deputies he had taken courses for his commercial driver'slicence."Why, I drove that bus better than most [bus] drivers could," the boy said,according to the incident report. "There isn't a scratch on it. I know howto start it, drive it, lower it, raise it."Ritchie is now in a juvenile facility, charged with vehicle theft anddriving without a valid licence. He does not yet have a lawyer, but isscheduled to appear in court on Nov. 7.Meanwhile, police and his father are struggling to understand why the15-year-old would impersonate a bus driver."The motive is really still unclear," said Lieutenant Dennis Lemma of theSeminole County Sheriff's Office. "One of the questions we want to answerfor is why this child would act out in the way that he did."Ritchie did not seem interested in pocketing the passengers' fares. Hecollected only US$6 in a locked strongbox and did not have the key.It was not his first joy ride. Mr. Bell says he took a tour bus in Januaryand drove it across Orlando. The following month, he absconded with anothertour bus and got as far as West Palm Beach -- a 2 1/2 hour trip -- beforepolice caught up with him. Both vehicles were taken from a bus yard and thekeys were in the ignition, the father said.Authorities in Seminole County say Ritchie was on probation for at least oneof the previous incidents when arrested last weekend. His father said he wascharged with grand theft auto and petty theft in the prior cases."It's something else," Mr. Bell, who works as a chef, said by telephoneyesterday. "He's got more skills driving a bus than I do."Mr. Bell said he does not plan to punish his son, but wants him to see apsychologist.Asked if the boy has mental problems, he replied, "He's got to if he'staking city buses around here, driving around and picking people up, eventhough he don't work for them."Father and son live in an Orlando condominium. Ritchie's mother is notinvolved in his life. Mr. Bell described his son as a good teenager whoregularly attends Grade 8 at a nearby middle school and earns decent grades."It really does appear that this child has a fascination with being a busdriver. That's the only thing we can account this to: A pure fascination ofdriving buses," Lieut. Lemma said.Mr. , one of two passengers still on the bus when the joyride ended,hopes the charges will not hurt the boy's future as a bus driver."He has to be punished. But at the same time, he obviously has a skill and apassion for what he wants to do," he said. "I hope that doesn't hinder himand set him back in his future."mvallis@...- - -To read the police report and listen to audio of the passenger's 911 call,go under online extras.; nationalpost.comC National Post 2006 Copyright C 2006 CanWest Interactive, a division of CanWest MediaWorksPublications, Inc.. All rights reserved. Stay in touch with old friends and meet new ones with Windows Live Spaces