Autistic man dies in hot van in suburban Philly

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JESUS! THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE!!!!!! 

Autistic man dies in hot van in suburban Philly
By MARYCLAIRE DALE (AP) – 31 minutes ago

PHILADELPHIA — An autistic young man who didn't speak was left in a scorching van at a residential treatment home, where his lifeless, overheated body was found more than five hours after his small group returned from an amusement park.

Brian Nevins, 20, was not deemed missing until a nurse looked for him to give him medication around 4 p.m. Saturday, as temperatures in suburban Philadelphia reached the high 90s. Nevins had returned with two other counselors and three other clients around noon from a brief trip to nearby Sesame Place.

Nevins was found in a parked van at Woods Services, a treatment home about 20 miles northeast of Philadelphia where the native New Yorker had lived since he was about 14.

His twin brother, also autistic, also lived at the center, authorities said. The surviving twin, who had not been on the outing, left the home with relatives after his brother's death, Middletown Township Detective Jeffry Sproehnle said.

The counselor responsible for Nevins on the trip also served as the van driver. She has been suspended, Sproehnle said. Woods Services did not return several calls seeking comment Tuesday.

Sproehnle did not disclose her initial statements to police but said she had contacted at least two lawyers. It's not known whether she retained one. Police are investigating, but it's not yet known what, if any, charges, she could face.

Authorities declined to identify the victim's parents or their hometown, and attempts to locate them were not successful. The family previously lived in Queens, and Nevins had been placed at the private home through the New York City Department of Education, according to Laura Postiglione, a spokeswoman for New York City's Administration for Children's Services.

According to the detective, a male and female counselor were each responsible for two clients on the trip. The female counselor, who was driving, dropped off her colleague and his two clients on campus and then drove a short distance to the adjoining homes where the two remaining clients lived.

Only one client made it inside.

"The van she was driving ended up back where it was supposed to be, and parked. ... She was only seen with one of the clients after that," Sproehnle said. The counselor turned in the van keys before finishing her shift at 3 p.m.

Nevins died of hyperthermia, the detective said.

Police did not disclose the name of the suspended counselor but said she had worked at the center for about eight years.

The home has a license in good standing, according to Mike Race, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare.

In November, a 17-year-old Woods resident died when he was struck by at least two cars after falling or jumping from a highway overpass.

The state welfare department investigated but concluded that staff did what they could and were not at fault, Race said. According to the agency's findings, the disorderly teen ran from an exit door at 1 a.m., setting off alarms and leading to an unsuccessful pursuit by staff members.

Woods Services was founded in 1913 and provides residential, educational and vocational services to more than 1,400 children and adults with various disabilities, according to its website.

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[Nut44x4]

Autistic man dies in hot van in suburban Philly
By MARYCLAIRE DALE (AP) – 1 hour ago

PHILADELPHIA — An autistic young man who didn't speak was left in a scorching van at a residential treatment home, where his lifeless, overheated body was found more than five hours after his small group returned from an amusement park.

Brian Nevins, 20, was not deemed missing until a nurse looked for him to give him medication around 4 p.m. Saturday, as temperatures in suburban Philadelphia reached the high 90s. Nevins had returned with two other counselors and three other clients around noon from a brief trip to nearby Sesame Place.

Nevins was found in a parked van at Woods Services, a treatment home about 20 miles northeast of Philadelphia where the native New Yorker had lived since he was about 14.

His twin brother, also autistic, also lived at the center, authorities said. The surviving twin, who had not been on the outing, left the home with relatives after his brother's death, Middletown Township Detective Jeffry Sproehnle said.

The counselor responsible for Nevins on the trip also served as the van driver. She has been suspended, Sproehnle said. Woods Services did not return several calls seeking comment Tuesday.

Sproehnle did not disclose her initial statements to police but said she had contacted at least two lawyers. It's not known whether she retained one. Police are investigating, but it's not yet known what, if any, charges, she could face.

Authorities declined to identify the victim's parents or their hometown, and attempts to locate them were not successful. The family previously lived in Queens, and Nevins had been placed at the private home through the New York City Department of Education, according to Laura Postiglione, a spokeswoman for New York City's Administration for Children's Services.

According to the detective, a male and female counselor were each responsible for two clients on the trip. The female counselor, who was driving, dropped off her colleague and his two clients on campus and then drove a short distance to the adjoining homes where the two remaining clients lived.

Only one client made it inside.

"The van she was driving ended up back where it was supposed to be, and parked. ... She was only seen with one of the clients after that," Sproehnle said. The counselor turned in the van keys before finishing her shift at 3 p.m.

Nevins died of hyperthermia, the detective said.

Police did not disclose the name of the suspended counselor but said she had worked at the center for about eight years.

The home has a license in good standing, according to Mike Race, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare.

In November, a 17-year-old Woods resident died when he was struck by at least two cars after falling or jumping from a highway overpass.

The state welfare department investigated but concluded that staff did what they could and were not at fault, Race said. According to the agency's findings, the disorderly teen ran from an exit door at 1 a.m., setting off alarms and leading to an unsuccessful pursuit by staff members.

Woods Services was founded in 1913 and provides residential, educational and vocational services to more than 1,400 children and adults with various disabilities, according to its website.

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Pa. worker charged in autistic man's hot-van death
By MARYCLAIRE DALE (AP) – 29 minutes ago

PENNDEL, Pa. — A Pennsylvania counselor was charged with manslaughter Tuesday in the heat death of a 20-year-old autistic man left for hours in a hot van.

Stacey Strauss, 40, of Philadelphia was expected to surrender to face a felony neglect charge and misdemeanor counts of involuntary manslaughter and reckless endangerment. In court papers, Strauss denied being assigned to care for Bryan Nevins on an outing the day of his death.

Nevins was found dead in the rear seat of a scorching hot van about five hours after a small group returned July 24 to Woods Services, a residential treatment program in suburban Philadelphia. The temperatures that day reached 97 degrees.

Strauss had called a supervisor from a nearby amusement park that morning to say Nevins was causing problems, biting himself and trying to bite another client, the police affidavit states. She was told the group should return home. They returned to the Langhorne campus from Sesame Place at about 12:30 p.m.

Strauss, who was driving the van, told authorities she was only responsible for one client while the other counselor on the trip was responsible for the other three. But her supervisor told police she had assigned Strauss to watch Nevins and a second client.

"My son was essentially murdered by this woman," William Nevins, a retired New York City homicide detective who lives in Oceanside, N.Y., told The Associated Press. "Now we'll see what the people of Bucks County think the life of a disabled person is worth."

He described his son, a triplet, as severely autistic but said he enjoyed music, running, swimming and other simple things. He and a triplet brother had previously been well cared for in their five years at Woods Services, the father said.

"He could be troublesome at times," said William Nevins, 58. "But on the whole, he was very friendly, very loving, very outgoing."

Strauss had a good work record in eight years at the Woods Center, where she made about $11 an hour as a residential counselor, her lawyer, Gregory Pagano, said. He described Strauss as a religious, family-oriented woman who had cared for Nevins over the years.

"It's a tragedy for everybody. My client is extremely distraught and remorseful," Pagano said. "Our investigation is leading us to the conclusion that this is just a great tragedy and an accident."

According to the police complaint, Strauss said she had seen all of the clients outside of the van when they returned, but conceded that she did not make sure Nevins was taken back to his building. She said she walked one client to his residence building after parking the van.

Nevins' absence in an adjacent residence went undiscovered until about 5 p.m., when a nurse sought to give him medications. He was long dead when his body was found in the rear seat, the coroner said.

Bucks County District Attorney David Heckler called Nevins' death "a needless tragedy."

"Mr. Nevins' death was not simply a tragic accident," Heckler said in a statement. "Rather, his death resulted from the criminal failure of the defendant to discharge her assigned responsibilities to Mr. Nevins."

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