Miami: Boy in coma; cops' hogtie under probe

[Guest guest]

Note: forwarded message attached.Joyce

In case you did not see this on the cover of today's Herald, I'm passing it along for your review. I'm not taking any sides for either party in this story, but wanted you to understand the danger and tragedy that can occur in an autistic family. Every time I hear that we lost another child to a drowning or to an incident such as this one, it breaks my heart. For those of us who are parents of autistic children, we shudder at the thought, because such a tragedy could happen to any one of us. We have to find the cause and a cure for this disorder so we don't lose any more children. You can do your part by simply writing a check, or going online and make a donation by credit card. Don't miss the opportunity to make an end of the year charitable contribution which you can write off on your 2 006 taxes. Every dollar counts, and is urgently needed. Joyce

MIAMI POLICE

Boy in coma; cops' hogtie under probe

Restrained by police as his family watched, a disabled 18-year-old lies in a coma at a Coral Gables hospital. The family says he was `hogtied.'

BY CAROL MARBIN MILLER

cmarbin@...

It wasn't the first time the Colindres family had to call police because their severely autistic son, , had become aggressive.

Twice before, Miami police took the 18-year-old to a psychiatric hospital for treatment.

But Tuesday night, the family says, officers specially trained to calm people with mental illness ''hogtied'' , sat on him until he stopped breathing, then resisted the family's entreaties to call an ambulance.

Colindres is now in a coma, in intensive care at Coral Gables Hospital.

''He is considered brain dead,'' said the family's attorney, Stuart Grossman. ``All this as a result of asking for help.''

Colindres' three siblings watched the confrontation, said Melvin Colindres, the teen's father. The siblings have been unable to work or go to school. The family has held a round-the-clock vigil in 's hospital room.

''They saw everything,'' said Melvin Colindres, 37. ``We were shocked. . . . I hope this will never happen again to a normal child, much less to a child with a disability.''

Angel Calzadilla, executive assistant to Miami Police Chief Timoney, said the actions of the Crisis Intervention Team -- officers trained to deal with the mentally ill -- are under investigation.

The department declined Friday to make the incident report public. Calzadilla also declined to name the officers involved.

Calzadilla said Miami police interviewed 's parents and siblings who were present and added: ``There were no allegations at any point of wrongdoing by the officers.''

''At no time was it alleged that [ Colindres] was thrown down,'' Calzadilla said. ``Officers used great care to bring him to the ground.''

Calzadilla said officers did not hogtie Colindres. A hogtie is a method of restraining a suspect by binding hands to feet behind the back.

Calzadilla said Colindres was restrained with a leather device officers call a ''hobble.'' He said it allows a greater distance between the hands and feet than a hogtie.

In the early and mid-1990s, several large departments, including San Diego and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office, banned hog-tying because of concerns of ''positional asphyxiation'' -- the position of the body makes it impossible to breathe.

A federal court ruled in 2001 that police cannot use hogties on people ''with diminished capacity,'' ruling in the death of a Laramie, Wyo., man in custody, but the case is not binding in Florida.

In April, the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin advised: ``Officers should consider restraining methods, such as hogtying, as a last resort.''

''Certainly, hogtying is not permitted at most police departments,'' Dr. Baden, a New York State Corrections Commission's Medical Review Board member and ex-chief New York City medical examiner, told The Miami Herald. ``I would have thought the city of Miami would frown upon hogtying because it is so dangerous, and it causes people either to die or become brain-damaged.''

has autism, an often-debilitating neurological disorder that can leave children and adults socially isolated and extremely difficult to manage. His family says the teen has the intellectual capacity of a 4-year-old.

The incident Tuesday night began when 's mother tried to get him and three siblings ready to attend a Jehovah's Witness Bible study and meeting. did not want to go, Grossman said, and ended up in an altercation with his mother, Alma Colindres, 40. One of his sisters called police.

Police records show the call was logged in as an ''emergency'' request for help, with the family reporting an autistic 18-year-old ''was having a violent episode and hitting everyone in the home,'' Calzadilla said. Dispatched at 6:47 p.m., officers arrived 15 minutes later, he said.

A female officer was first, Grossman said, and calmed before three or four backup officers arrived. The confrontation then worsened, Grossman said.

ended up outside the home on a neighbor's lawn scuffling with the officers, Grossman said. His wrists were restrained behind his back with metal handcuffs. His legs were tied with a leather strap that was looped through the handcuffs. An officer held the strap, Grossman said, and could pull on it to reduce the slack.

''Imagine being on the ground in a device that looks like a dog's leash,'' Grossman said. ``An officer is standing over him holding that leash.''

Calzadilla said officers used the hobble device because he ``was still thrashing around and kicking.''

Calzadilla declined to discuss precisely what happened after officers restrained the teen, saying only: ``The subject stopped breathing.''

According to Melvin Colindres and Grossman, two or three officers were on top of as he lay on his stomach. When Colindres arrived home, his son was in the hobble device and appeared calm.

The hobble strap, Colindres said, ''was really tight,'' and his son was not moving. ``I just ran to him, and I was rubbing his head. I told him that I was there, that his dad was there.''

was bleeding from his chin, and Colindres went to get a towel, he said. When he returned, his wife was frantic. 'She screamed, `Mel! Mel! is not breathing!' '' Colindres said. ' `Do something. He is dead.' ''

Officers told the family that was merely ''exhausted,'' Colindres said. When one officer got up off the teen, another took his place.

Colindres said he told police his son did not look right. ''That's not normal; he's not breathing,'' the father said he told an officer. 'He said to me: `Are you a doctor?' ''

Another 10 minutes passed before officers called for an ambulance, Colindres said, and then another five minutes before paramedics arrived.

Calzadilla said officers had begun CPR.

Melvin Colindres said his family has been trying to cope with the tragedy ''as best we can,'' but every moment brings fresh anguish.

would greet his father every night when he returned home from his chef's job or look out the window for his dad's car. ''He would expect me to take him out for a ride,'' Colindres said.

''I have a lot of faith in my God,'' Colindres said. ``My belief is giving me the strength to help my family realize the situation we're going through. This is a difficult situation. But the days to come will be harder.''

Miami Herald staff writer nah Nesmith contributed to this report.

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