Friday, October 5, 2007

NEWS: The Arc of North Carolina Signs On To Amicus Brief

The Arc of North Carolina signed on to an Amicus Brief filed by Carolina Legal Assistance (North Carolina’s Protection and Advocacy system) in the case of Floyd Brown, a man with cognitive disabilities. The Arc of North Carolina has long advocated for the equitable treatment of people with cognitive disabilities in the criminal justice system. Floyd Brown, a man with an IQ of 50, was accused of murder fourteen years ago. In 1993 he was admitted into Dorothea Dix Hospital for evaluation. Since then he has been confined without due process at Dix, a state psychiatric hospital. He has never had a trial. He has never had an opportunity to hear the evidence the state has against him. Throughout his confinement at Dorothea Dix state doctors have stated that Mr. Brown lacks the mental capacity to participate in his trial. Mental health professionals have stated that Mr. Brown’s behavior is no longer dangerous, yet he remains at Dix, a prisoner of a flawed system. The Arc of North Carolina has long fought for the equitable treatment of all people with cognitive and developmental disabilities. This standard of equitable treatment must be upheld by our state’s Judicial System. Is Floyd Brown less deserving of his Constitutional rights simply because of his cognitive disabilities?

Read the press release from CLA:
http://thearcnc.blogspot.com/2007/09/news-disability-rights-organization.html

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