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Tears and prayers for a departed son
Parents offer forgiveness to two health aides indicted in boy's
death
February 22, 2007
By Michele Morgan Bolton
BETHLEHEM -- Saying goodbye to his
son reduced Mike Carey to a tearful whisper Wednesday as he gazed at
the small coffin marked with a single blue-and-green balloon.
"I want to honor Jonathan for all
the things he went through over the years, and he was still smiling,
every step of the way," he said.
"I'm proud of him. And I am so
blessed and honored to have been his dad."
Jonathan died last week when,
police said, he was improperly restrained by a health aide from the
O.D. Heck Developmental Center in Niskayuna. The nonverbal, autistic
child had been in a van with two O.D. Heck workers and another
14-year-old resident on an outing Thursday to Crossgates Mall. They
never got there.
An Albany County grand jury voted
to indict the workers, Edwin Tirado, 35, and Nadeem Mall, 32, both
of Schenectady, though details were not made public Wednesday night.
Assistant District Attorney Mark Harris said the indictments would
be handed up this morning in county court.
Police already have charged them
with second-degree manslaughter. They allege the men drove around
for 90 minutes -- running errands, getting beverages and buying a
video game -- after Jonathan stopped breathing. By the time they
reached the residential center and sought help, it was too late.
Wearing yellow jail jump suits and
orange slip-on shoes, Tirado and Mall appeared before Colonie Town
Justice Andrew Sommers, where they were advised the grand jury had
voted early Wednesday evening. They were taken to the Albany County
jail without bail.
"I have the impression they will be
the same charges, the manslaughter in the second-degree," said Brian
Donohue, the attorney representing Tirado.
Tirado's brother, Frankie, who
attended the hearing, described his brother as a good man working a
difficult job with long hours.
"It's always been a hard job," he
said.
Despite the charges, Mike Carey and
his wife, Lisa, offered forgiveness for the workers.
"We're not angry at them -- we're
angry at what happened," Mike Carey said. "We love them, and we're
praying for them. And we ask you to pray for them."
Jonathan Carey had been moved to
the Niskayuna facility after suffering alleged abuse at the Anderson
School in Dutchess County in 2004. A lawsuit in state Supreme Court
in that case is pending.
The Careys have sought legislation
to open confidential records that could shed light on who hurt their
son in that case. Late Tuesday, Jonathan's Law was introduced in the
Legislature, said Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg, D-Long Beach.
Legislation will give parents access to all records concerning minor
children they think have been abused.
A news conference related to their
son's death is scheduled this morning at the office of the Careys'
attorney.
Wednesday's standing-room-only
service at Delmar Full Gospel Church was held to celebrate
Jonathan's life, according to a program adorned with a white dove.
The bright, sunny sanctuary was
adorned with balloons, flowers and photos of Jonathan and his
family.
Slides on two huge screens showed
Jonathan's first moments with his mother and father, birthday
smiles, Halloween costumes and Christmas mornings with younger
brother Joshua, 9.
"To be absent in the body means to
be present in the Lord," Pastor Jay Francis told the gathering.
"Mike and Lisa, you and the church are carriers of light. God has
chosen you to stand up for what is right."
Jonathan's "homecoming" to God
"will bring big changes to government and many hearts will
reconsider their ways," Francis said.
Among those who spoke Wednesday was
Jonathan's most recent teacher, who said the boy was determined to
communicate and had just mastered using a computer mouse. She said
she tried hard to get him to say "Mom," but he spoke through his
actions and his body.
She said other staff members in O.D.
Heck's adolescent wing were thankful for the family's forgiveness
and would always love Jonathan.
"He was a hero," said family friend
John Moritz, who described Jonathan as "a catalyst, a challenge and
a gift" who opened his parents' hearts to compassion.
"His life inspired his parents and
others and, through his death, many children will find hope and
parents will find help," he said.
Lisa Carey said she was always
drawn to the name Jonathan, even before she knew it meant "gift from
the Lord."
"Now, he is completely safe," she
said, as she leaned into her husband for support. "And our hope is
his life will speak for righteousness and justice so others who have
no voice can be heard."
Michele Morgan Bolton can be
reached at 434-2403 or by e-mail at mbolton@timesunion.com.
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