From a post in another Judge Rotenberg Center thread:Former Teacher Statement
If you don't mind, SDH, I'm going to copy that out in full...
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Greg Miller AffidavitApril 26, 2007
My name is Greg Miller of Newton, MA. The following statement is true and accurate to the best of my knowledge.
I would like to share memories with you that I have of observing students display significant signs of traumatic stress from watching other students receive electric shocks at Judge Rotenberg Center. I worked at Judge Rotenberg Center (JRC) as a Teacher's Assistant from January, 2003, to March 21, 2006, well over three years. Having a teacher's certification in Elementary Education, I was offered the position of Classroom Teacher soon after starting, which I declined. I would like to share some of my memories of students showing signs of severe stress that I observed while working at Judge Rotenberg Center.
Students exhibited significant signs of stress on a regular daily basis, not a once in a while occasion. How many times did certain students receive electric shocks from the GED devices? It depends on which classroom you are working in. Typical in the classrooms that I worked in my my first two years at JRC, a few students received up to 30 shocks a day, while often three or four students out of seven to ten students received up to 20 shocks in a day. And other students in the same classroom might get only three or seven or ten shocks a day. Add all of those shocks up together, complete with the screams from that student and the responses from other students, and you have one great nightmare. Add to the the screeches coming down the hallways from students getting shocked in the rooms around them.
It is not a rare and isolated incident at JRC when students see another student about to get shocked and think the shock is for them. They scream or stand up out of their seat or attempt to remove their electrodes off their arms and legs because they think they are about to get shocked. I remember being told by one teacher (Rachael) when I started working in her classroom to always make certain to announce to the students in the classroom that I was going to get my pencil every time I reached in my pocket. This would help some students to not overreact and thereby reduce their chance for getting shocked. The GED remote control boxes would hang from our apron belts, and merely reaching for our pencils in our pockets near the remote control boxes would would cause such fear and panic That students would scream or jump out of their seat or try to grab our arms to stop us. All of these behaviors had to be consequated with a GED electric shock, and if staff did not shock the students, staff would get evaluated and suspended, and might even lose their jobs. I recall one incident in particular when students were lining up to go to the bathroom here e had to shock four students, one right after another, because they all reacted at the same time hen I forgot to say, "I'm getting my pencil!" I remembered from then on to always make the announcement in that classroom before reaching for my pencil. While I remember this incident, which took place in the Fall of 2004, it was not uncommon to see several students shocked one right after the other when they over-reacted when we reached for our belts. There were no exceptions -- a screem was a screem, a grab was a grab, and we had to follow court-approved orders.
As stated, these behaviors, of students reacting and getting shocked when they see staff reaching for the remote controls for other students, was normal and every day occurrence so it becomes difficult to remember specific incidences other than those that stand out as different. It was normal for all students to make the loud panic screams before the shocks, more than after the shocks. The students will scream before the shock in anticipation, and during the shock, but rarely after the two second shock is finished.
The regular response for C.L. was a high pitched, "No, no, no," or he might exhibit a singing voice, together with big breaths and wide eyes, nonsense words, and trying to keep his mouth shut at the same time to avoid getting shocked for disruption. J.G. started with a loud medium-toned pitch which quickly rose up and escalated to a high pitch with words coming out of his mouth real fast in Spanish. M.C. would make fast high-pitched sounds in falsetto when he saw someone reaching for anybody's remote control box, and he would frequently jump out of his seat even if you tell him in advance that it is not for him. I recall him screaming blood-curdling screams when it wasn't even him getting the shock. Because he screamed, he had to get shocked too, and we had to work with him for a while to get him to calm down. O.G., a non-verbal student who understood a lot, would typically stop his work, tense up, get a look of apprehension and terror in his eyes, make sounds of blowing air through his lips while opening and closing his lips repeatedly, when he saw a staff reach for a GED remote control box. A.T. as more apathetic in his response, and would look at you with a blank emotionless stare, receive his shock with hardly a flinch in his eyes, then might quietly moan a couple of times to himself over the net minute or two, a delayed response. A.O. when new would look at you and start to shed large and slow tears, but later it became more common for him to tuck his shoulder in and duck his head (a common response) and make a high-pitched squeak or squeal with faster teary eyes that did not have time to build up when a staff reached for the GED remote control box.
One strategy that we used when we were about to give a student a shock as to quickly and rapidly give what are called, "AC's" (I think for Accelerating Consequences, such as "Johnny, good, working on your task! Way to go!"), to all of the students NOT about to get a shock to let them know that the shock was not for them. If a student exhibits a behavior, then gets an AC by mistake, staff were not supposed to give the student a shock, but instead were to write up (evaluate) the staff who gave the AC. So if a student heard an AC with their name, some students learned to panic less severely, even though they were still reacting. All students seemed to react in some way when watching and hearing one of their classmates get shocked.
One incident in the Fall of 2004 that clearly stands out in my memory was with B.S., a non-verbal adult male with autism in the smaller of the two Workshop rooms for adults at JRC. B.S. was very fearful of getting an electric shock any time a staff passed the GED remote control box off to another staff, or went to pick it up. B.S. would stiffen up, tuck his shoulders in, lean to one side, and cringe, sometimes covering his head. Cheri Boisvert, a talented Program Designer (a high position, supervised Case Managers) whose desk was based in B.S.'s classroom where I worked, commented that B.S.'s behavior was disruptive every time he reacted to a staff handling a GED box. Soon after, one morning Cheri announced that the behavior added to B.S.' behavior plan. He would now receive a GED shock for the behavior. B.S.'s teacher and I were both concerned. We did not find the behavior so disruptive, felt bad about it, and knowing B.S., we knew it was going to be a behavior for which B.S. was going to receive several shocks for per day for many weeks and months. If I remember correctly, B.S. was on the GED4 at the time, the strong GED type that leaves bloody marks that scab over. I spoke to Cheri and expressed my concern, for which she could have evaluated me for doing. The behavior was already added to B.S.'s sheet, and Cheri quickly responded that it was B.S.'s program and I would have to follow it. I didn't like it, and B.S.'s teacher expressed to me that she didn't like it either. But even if I were to quit that day, which I considered at that time, I knew that my quitting would not help B.S. It was B.S.'s first day with that behavior, and the only hope that we had for B.S. was if somebody realized that the new behavior was not going to work for B.S. Cheri Boisvert was in the room and was monitoring us to make certain that B.S.'s new plan was followed. She pointed out to me the first time B.S. exhibited the behavior that day. He was leaning way over, all tensed up, thinking that he was about to get shocked. I was instructed to give the shock the first time for that behavior. B.S. did not understand why he as shocked, and stood up, surprised, with a questioning look. (B.S. is non-verbal.) I was told to follow his plan and shock him for standing up "Out Of Seat without permission" (OOS), which was in response to his pain and surprise. B.S. tried to hold the electrodes off of his skin as they burned him. So I was told to shock him a third time. B.S. tried to run away from his table and hid behind the sofa on the other side of the classroom, and was shocked a fourth time, I think for noncompliance. Shocking students several times in a row is normal routine at JRC, and is called a "flurry" of behaviors. Often electric shocks come is flurries, and there is a special way to record such flurries on GED recording sheets by writing only the first behavior down on the GED Recording Sheet, and then writing the total number of GEDs of the flurry in a separate column so that we don't have to write down the name of each behavior.
B.S. seemed very confused, not understanding why he was shocked. A few minutes later, he saw the GED box on my belt again, and curled up and leaned over again in his seat, covering his head (his new behavior), and I tried to ignore it, but Cheri pointed it out to me again. (By policy, she should have evaluated me for missing the behavior.) B.S. got another three shocks, one for his new behavior, another for holding the electrodes off of his skin, and the third for getting out of his seat. This continued. A few times B.S. even grabbed staff to try to avoid getting shocked. So I was instructed to hold one of the remote control boxes for B.S., while another staff held the other remote control box. This resulted in additional shocks. Sometimes B.S. would merely look at me and stand up and start to run from me, resulting in him getting shocked. I was closely monitored during this time by Cherie, and by Monitors over the video camera, to make certain that I followed B.S.'s program. I was upset, knowing that B.S. was panicking. I did protest, explaining that B.S. did not understand why he was getting shocked. As I recall, it took only a couple of hours before B.S. got to the maximum of 30 shocks in that day. The school then had to get special permission from B.S.'s psychologist to go past 30. The psychologist was off campus, working part time at JRC and part time elsewhere. He called back, spoke to B.S.'s teacher, then spoke to me, instead of speaking to the Program Director monitoring up. That was not usual. Something else happened that was not usual at JRC. The psychologist backed us. The psychologist made the decision that the added behavior was not working for B.S., and permanently took the behavior back off of the recording sheet. I reasoned to myself that it was better that B.S. got all 30 shocks and got the behavior removed entirely from his sheet, than to get shocked each day 10 to 20 shocks for exhibiting the behavior daily for weeks and months.
Soon after, I was transferred to another classroom. I didn't work in the classroom with B.S. for months because I had new responsibilities. But the next summer, approximately 8-9 months later, B.S. was outside at the weekly dinner that students earn through good behaviors. B.S. signed to his teacher that he had to go bathroom, and I offered to take him in. B.S. had a look of fear in his eyes. When we got to the bathroom, B.S. was definitely showing fear. I offered him some water, which he took and drank, then I motioned for him to go into the bathroom. Something triggered his memory, he started to perspire, breath heavily, then he grabbed my arm that was closest to his GED remote control box. By now we had a crises because he knew for certain that he was going to get shocked for panicking and grabbing my arm, so B.S. pulled me in and grabbed my other arm, then grabbed my head. I called for help to another Program Designer, Jennifer Remy, who happened to be around the corner and rushed to help me. B.S. had to be brought down to the floor because he was fighting and kicking so hard, and he received several GED shocks, in accordance with his plan. I had worked closely with B.S. for close to a year and he had never acted this way towards me before that day when I was forced to give him close to 30 shocks. There is no doubt in my mind at all that B.S. was remembering what happened eight months before, and never understood what behavior he had exhibited to cause me to give him the shocks. So wight months later, he thought I was going to chock him for no reason. The very reason B.S. had that behavior added to his sheet in the first place that day eight months before was that he didn't understand when he was going to shocked, wasn't clear from start for what behaviors he was going to get shocked, which left him guessing if the shock is for him every time a staff reaches for a GED remote control box.
I would like to share one more memory that stands out in my mind of students showing signs of severe stress in response to watching others get shocked. G.M., a high functioning adult male with a long history at JRC, had swallowed a small blade from an eX-Acto Kife kit. It embedded in his gut and had to be removed surgically. So JRC's response was to leave him strapped up in leg, arm, and waist restraints all day while at school. Then three days or more per week, when G.M. was least expecting it, a staff would rush in the large classroom with a plastic knife, repeatedly yelling loudly the words, "Do you want to swallow a knife?" The staff would put the blade up to G.M.'s mouth, and while G.M. was screaming at the top of his lungs in fear, moving the best he could, unable to defend himself due to the restraints, someone hiding with the GED remote control box would press the button. G.M.'s scream would change to the loud sound one might make with their last breath that they take that could be heard from the opposite side of the cement building. It was much like the movie, "Clockwork Orange" in principle.
G.M.'s "treatment" did not take place in a small classroom, or even in a room where G.M. was isolated from the rest of the students. This took place in a classroom with over 40 students. Sometimes new staff were not forewarned, and were confused whether they should protect the student from the aggressive staff. These "treatment" sessions were very violent for anybody to watch, and sometimes students sitting elsewhere in the classroom would jump up or scream out of fear. Staff were absolutely required to follow student programs and shock any student for "screaming" or for "Out of Seat without permission," or any other behavior, even though they were reacting out of fear and panic in seeing what was happening to their classmate. Students had to continue their task of counting 12 popsicle sticks and double-wrapping a rubber band around them as though oblivious to their classmate being violently attacked in front of them. Even stopping work had to be pinpointed during those intense moments and student plans followed — no exceptions.
The investigator from the Department of Mental Retardation (DMR) questioned me about what happened with G.M. I knew that these "treatments" for G.M. were pre-approved by a judge, and were therefore legal in Massachusetts. So I described my concern for the other students who were forced to watch, and not allowed to show normal human reaction in facade of such violence of staff against students. The DMR investigator sent me a copy of his short report which said nothing to address what other students had to witness and endure, only that what happened is legal under current law of Massachusetts. There is NOTHING in place but MORE SHOCKS at JRC to monitor what the other students had to endure without going crazy! It's control fear with more fear!
I resigned from Judge Rotenberg Center when my doctor pointed out physical signs that my stress levels were too high. If my feelings were affecting my health, I have no doubt that students' health is also affected at JRC. It's the students who are tortured.
It is my hope that my written accounts may be useful to help people realize what is taking place inside the walls of Judge Rotenberg Center, to realize that students with autism are also human with human feelings and reactions, and to persuade people to do whatever it takes to get students out of their torture chambers at Judge Rotenberg Center.
Sincerely,
(signature)
Greg Miller
Former employee at Judge Rotenberg Center
