A disgrace...
Over 70% of people with disabilities said they had been victims of abuse. More than 50% of these victims had experienced physical abuse, with some 41% having been victims of sexual abuse. Nearly 9 of 10 respondents with disabilities had suffered verbal or emotional abuse. Most victims said they had experienced abuse on more than 20 occasions.
About half of the incidents of abuse were not reported to authorities. When reports were filed, fewer than 10% of alleged perpetrators were arrested.
Only one-third of victims received therapy and fewer than 5% received benefits from victim compensation programs.
“Abuse of people with disabilities is a hidden epidemic with a huge number of invisible victims,” said Jim Stream, Executive Director of The Arc of Riverside County, an agency providing services to people with intellectual disabilities.
“The findings from the report are an indictment our entire criminal justice system,” said Alice Vachss, Special Prosecutor for Sex Crimes in Lincoln County, Oregon.
See 3 page summary of findings at: http://disabilityandabuse.org/survey/findings.pdf