Justice for Ryan Gainer!
Justice for Ryan Gainer!
The Issue
As an autistic person, I am quite concerned about the recent fatal police shooting of Ryan Gainer, a 15 year old Black and autistic boy. While he was allegedly running towards San Bernardino police officers carrying what appears to be a hoe, the video shows the police officers allegedly pointing a handgun directly at Ryan Gainer’s head. From what I understood is that police are supposed to deescalate, then try less lethal options like a taser or less lethal shotgun sockround if a weapon must be deployed. If a lethal weapon is deployed it is usually aimed at the torso. It appears the officer is aiming at Ryan Gainer’s head, which would be a kill shot.
While news bulletins describe the tool as “sharp edged”, it is dubious as to how dangerous the object really was. Photos of the tool seem to reveal the tool was likely rather blunt with no lethal potential. Additionally, many autistic people, including myself, have poor coordination, especially when experiencing neurological disregulation. Police wear bullet proof vests, and could probably have removed the offending object without shooting anyone. There is also the possibility that Ryan Gainer was simply waving the object around as a “stim”, a repetitive and meditative movement that helps an autistic person focus or calm down. Ryan Gainer was clearly disregulated at the moment. He needed a calming response, not police pointing a gun at his head and probably yelling at him. He was allegedly shot 3 times only 7 seconds after arriving at his home. According to this petition on Care2, Ryan Gainer was even registered on the Vulnerable Person’s Registry, so police knew he was autistic.
https://action.momsrising.org/sign/Justice4RyanGainer/?source=action
There are plenty of non violent ways to deescalate a person in crisis. As an autistic person, I have found paramedics to be better responders than police. They ask how I am feeling, engage with me in whatever I am interested in, and dialogue with me, rather than seeing my disregulation behaviour as a threat. Ryan Gainer was too overwhelmed to do his chores. Perhaps police could have offered to help rake the leaves, instead of responding with violence. The problem is, police are trained to see everything as a weapon, and all behaviour as threatening. I have had similar meltdowns to Ryan Gainer. The reason I am alive is because I am white and female, not black and male.
Toronto is piloting a program called the Toronto Community Crisis Service, a non police alternative to respond to people in crisis. It is a far more humane approach to assisting a person experiencing a neurological disregulation. https://www.toronto.ca/community-people/public-safety-alerts/community-safety-programs/toronto-community-crisis-service/
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The Issue
As an autistic person, I am quite concerned about the recent fatal police shooting of Ryan Gainer, a 15 year old Black and autistic boy. While he was allegedly running towards San Bernardino police officers carrying what appears to be a hoe, the video shows the police officers allegedly pointing a handgun directly at Ryan Gainer’s head. From what I understood is that police are supposed to deescalate, then try less lethal options like a taser or less lethal shotgun sockround if a weapon must be deployed. If a lethal weapon is deployed it is usually aimed at the torso. It appears the officer is aiming at Ryan Gainer’s head, which would be a kill shot.
While news bulletins describe the tool as “sharp edged”, it is dubious as to how dangerous the object really was. Photos of the tool seem to reveal the tool was likely rather blunt with no lethal potential. Additionally, many autistic people, including myself, have poor coordination, especially when experiencing neurological disregulation. Police wear bullet proof vests, and could probably have removed the offending object without shooting anyone. There is also the possibility that Ryan Gainer was simply waving the object around as a “stim”, a repetitive and meditative movement that helps an autistic person focus or calm down. Ryan Gainer was clearly disregulated at the moment. He needed a calming response, not police pointing a gun at his head and probably yelling at him. He was allegedly shot 3 times only 7 seconds after arriving at his home. According to this petition on Care2, Ryan Gainer was even registered on the Vulnerable Person’s Registry, so police knew he was autistic.
https://action.momsrising.org/sign/Justice4RyanGainer/?source=action
There are plenty of non violent ways to deescalate a person in crisis. As an autistic person, I have found paramedics to be better responders than police. They ask how I am feeling, engage with me in whatever I am interested in, and dialogue with me, rather than seeing my disregulation behaviour as a threat. Ryan Gainer was too overwhelmed to do his chores. Perhaps police could have offered to help rake the leaves, instead of responding with violence. The problem is, police are trained to see everything as a weapon, and all behaviour as threatening. I have had similar meltdowns to Ryan Gainer. The reason I am alive is because I am white and female, not black and male.
Toronto is piloting a program called the Toronto Community Crisis Service, a non police alternative to respond to people in crisis. It is a far more humane approach to assisting a person experiencing a neurological disregulation. https://www.toronto.ca/community-people/public-safety-alerts/community-safety-programs/toronto-community-crisis-service/
186
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Petition created on March 25, 2024