Does This Feel 'wrong' To You?

[sp1814]

I don't know the legal position, but surely if someone has the mental age of a 10-12 year old, they would have to be questioned in the presence of a lawyer or guardian?

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/downs-syndrome-teenager-arrested-and-left-terrified-in-cell-for-nine-hours-after-trying-to-retrieve-favourite-baseball-cap-from-school-on-bank-holiday-monday-9326930.html

Other than that, from what I have read, there seems to have been a bit of a 'common sense leakage' on the part of the arresting officers...

Or not?

[Cloverjo]

It feels very wrong. Even though "correct procedures" may have been followed, the police should have also used a bit of common sense, I agree.

[Zeuhl]

/A police spokesman told the Standard Abdul had been treated as a vulnerable person and correct procedures were followed./

I think that means they refrained from Tasering him.

[rockyracoon]

Yep, feels wrong to me too.

[kvalidir]

Horrible. The police ought to know better but then they routinely lack common sense and empathy targeting vulnerable individuals whilst reusing to actually do proper police work that requires some effort.

[hc4361]

Did the police know who he was?

[pixie373]

Yes. This is really difficult though. With Downs syndrome it is easier to see, but we have this quite a lot with elderly people with dementia - they agree or sign things at the door without really understanding. I know it's a different situation, but how do you tell whether someone can make their own decisions or not? I'm not sure what they mean here of "safeguarding a vulnerable adult"- but it sounds as though they didn't do it very well!

[Peter Pedant]

Px " safeguarding a vulnerable adult " is a standard phrase
and .... er ... something they have to do .

OK something they say they do

[pixie373]

I know about it in care, but a stranger wouldn't. I've seen (and stopped) people giving out bank account details to a stranger on the phone. How do we know who is who?

[Baldric]

Could have done better imo!

[sp1814]

pixie373

I agree - the police and social services have a difficult balancing act to perform. At the same time, they have to ensure vulnerable people don't have their liberties unnecessarily curtailed, whilst also not allowing them to endanger themselves.

One of the things that troubles me about this story is that the lad in question has come out of this with a criminal record. He already has the odds of finding employment stacked against him without that additional burden.

[jno]

beats me how you issue a caution to someone like that - don't they have to agree to it? How could he?

Very strange behaviour, on their part.

[pixie373]

The criminal age of responsibility is 10- but i don't know how literally you should take someone's mental age. I suppose it comes down to whether he understood it was wrong or not.

[sp1814]

divebuddy

You've actually touched on something I was just thinking. Just because some medically has a mental age of x, does that mean they have the same legal age?

My concern about this story is also now has a criminal record. With what he has stacked against him (in terms of getting a job), that cannot help.