Editor, The Spotlight;
My hard work for years as the father of Jonathan Carey, who had autism and was killed by his state caregiver, had all been meant for the good. I was responsible for convincing Danny Hakim and the NY Times to do the massive investigative reporting series in 2011 titled “Abused & Used,” which was used for evil purposes by Gov. Cuomo. This series, which was a runner up for a Pulitzer Prize, was used by the Cuomo administration to spin a statewide web of secrecy through concealing public records and purposefully violating Freedom of Information Law (FOIL). A governor of principal would have immediately moved to stop and prevent the rampant abuse and neglect and protect 1 million of our most vulnerable residents.
Instead, Gov. Cuomo misused this NY Times series, which obtained thousands of pages of damning information against the state of New York to establish a culture of concealing information, as reported by the AP News piece going viral titled “Cuomo’s Office Tightly Controls Public Records.” The NY Times series clearly exposed horrific abuses committed against the disabled. Genuine reform should have been pursued to finally provide safe care for our disabled residents. Instead, the investigative series was used as a backdrop by Cuomo and co-conspirators within his administration to protect unspeakable acts of evil.
Right here in the Town of Bethlehem across from the Delaware Plaza calls are coming in from all over the state averaging over 7,500 complaints a month and 11-12 deaths every day. The state-run abuse hotline is called The Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs, after a name change following previous exposure of its practices, but it has not become a center for justice at all. The legacy of this state agency is one of keeping most reported cases from ever going to 911 thus preventing local police and first responders from being able to protect vulnerable individuals or obtain evidence and generate independent reports. This is how New York has been able to successfully cover up almost everything for decades.
My FOIL requests for statistical data regarding reported cases of abuse and neglect of the disabled have been withheld. Every month, horrible crimes against our most vulnerable are committed and reported to the Justice Center abuse hotline, statistics of which have been purposefully withheld by the Cuomo administration since April of this year. From the AP News story, it now appears evident that FOIL requests are being denied across the state on a systemwide basis and are being screened for political purposes. My approaching the NY Times was to protect and save lives — I had no idea that my hard work would catapult Gov. Cuomo into such a level of depravity. Thankfully, this is now surfacing publicly following the Jonathan Carey Foundation 600 Mile Walk for Justice Tour across New York to expose these abuses and cover ups. We have asked everyone statewide to call their legislators demanding an end to these gross injustices.
Michael Carey
Bethlehem
