FDA may finally make it illegal to shock autistic kids as punishment (www.motherjones.com)

submitted 3 weeks ago by HellsBelle@sh.itjust.works to c/news@lemmy.world

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In March 2024, the Food and Drug Administration under President Joe Biden introduced a new rule that would have banned, after decades, the use of electric shocks on disabled children as a form of punishment. A ban on forcibly shocking kids—which the American Academy of Pediatrics says causes “long-lasting adverse physical and psychological impacts,” was set to come into force last year—but the Trump FDA kicked the can down the road, giving itself more time to decide whether its new leadership was on board.

Now, two years later, the FDA’s website claims that a decision will be made in the coming days on whether or not to follow through.

Massachusetts’ Judge Rotenberg Educational Center (JRC), the focus of a 2007 Mother Jones investigation, remains the only known US institution to use electric shock devices to control—and punish—disabled youths in its care, many of whom are autistic or have mental illnesses, like schizophrenia.

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[-] nkat2112@sh.itjust.works 7 points 3 weeks ago

If you'll permit me to replace the first name "Matthew" by "Fuckhead,"

It would appear that Fuckhead Israel is a horrible human being:

The Judge Rotenberg Center was founded by Matthew Israel in 1971 as the Behavior Research Institute (BRI). In 2002, JRC staff tied an autistic boy face-down to a board with four-point restraints and shocked him 31 times at the highest amperage setting. The first shock was given for failing to take off his coat when asked, and the remaining 30 shocks were given for screaming and tensing up while being shocked. The boy was later hospitalized with third degree burns and acute stress disorder, but, as neither the law nor JRC policy had been broken, no action was taken against any of the staff.

The above quote is taken from this Wikipedia article:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judge_Rotenberg_Center

Truly a sick individual. It appears he managed to escape persecution:

Six students have died of preventable causes at the school since it opened in 1971. The school has since been condemned for torture by the United Nations special rapporteur on torture. In 2011, Israel was indicted on criminal charges of child endangerment, obstructing justice, and acting as an accessory after the fact. He was forced to resign his position at the JRC as part of a plea deal to avoid prosecution.

The above is from yet another depressing Wikipedia article:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Israel

I'm wondering: can dangerous fuckheads like Fuckhead Israel not be decertified from academic institutions in the US?

[-] Vieric@piefed.social 1 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Holy fucking shit, how can anyone say no to banning that!? I have two autistic brothers, one of them severe and non-verbal. I will admit that caring for him has placed a very heavy burden on our family, but never once even in our darkest moments have any of us ever considered something so cruel. If I knew of someone doing this I would at a minimum shatter their fucking jaw. And I consider myself a pretty pacifistic person in general. I know this administration is downright evil, but this is a real easy fucking win. Why in God's green earth would you hesitate on something like this unless it's purely for cruelty's sake? I mean, I suppose I would not put it past this administration in the least, but god damn man.

this post was submitted on 28 Apr 2026

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