Caleb Ross is one of two residents who has his own personal section within the boundaries of the CHDC garden.

“He comes out and waters and picks every day,” Bryan Nicolle, a rehabilitation instructor who works in the garden, said as the LCD watched Ross get to work and begin watering a cluster of flourishing cucumber plants. “Caleb is one of two that has his own beds that I don’t touch. And, [he does] amazing.”

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with disabilities, and Rauch’s Hawthorn Glen homes, despite being in a subdivision with people who don’t have disabilities, are all located right next to each other.

If the government rules later this year that Rauch’s homes aren’t integrated enough, the nonprofit could lose its funding, said Loren Pilcher, Rauch’s director of supported living.

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Finally, Jennifer Owens, the director of family services for Blue River Services, Inc. in Harrison County, an organization that assists people with disabilities, would like for the task force to address the state’s funding for First Steps, an Indiana program that provides early-intervention to young children with disabilities. 

Since 2002, the state has cut funding for the program three times, which has caused multiple providers to stop participating, said state Rep. Ed Clere. Blue River Services is still involved in First Steps, but it’s becoming more and more difficult for them to pay their therapists a competitive wage, which leads to hiring and retention problems, Owens said. 

Baugh is so worried about the lack of help from the government that she believes some of the children who aren’t being treated today could end up doing bad things in the future (although most people with developmental disabilities do not display aggressive or self injurious behavior, according to the University of California San Diego’s website). 

“Then you sit back and you say, ‘well where were their parents?’” Baugh said. 

She has an answer: Their parents were advocating for them. It was the lawmakers who weren’t listening.

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With a state task force in southern Indiana gathering feedback about changes to the services and programs offered to people with disabilities in the state, concerns over Christopher's job and his future brought her in to advocate for him before the task force. She wasn't alone, dozens of other parents and employees of groups that help provide services or programs to people with disabilities showed up to speak before the task force, urging them to keep their programs or to increase funding to help encourage their staff to stay. 

"There have been several states that have gotten rid of their shelter workshops and that this was something that was possibly being looked at. And we don't want to see that option taken away from those that really need that," Means said.

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.Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch, the chair of Indiana’s Intellectual and Development Disabilities Task Force, who toured Rauch on Tuesday, sees the benefits of both kinds of work. But in the disability services realm, the options are polarizing.

Supported employment is seen as a way to integrate people with disabilities into the community, but many employees and their families feel more comfortable working in a sheltered workshop with their peers and staff that are trained to deal with their needs. But there’s also criticism that sheltered work results in below average wages for people with disabilities who are paid based on productivity, not minimum wage standards.

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"Our treatment is based on scientific research. It's the most effective and successful treatment that will work with young children who are developing and who have some of the characteristics of autism," said Dr. Susannah Poe the Director of ABA Servies for WVU Medicine Children's.

"The service we provide is very helpful to families. It teaches them, as well as what we teach the children, exactly how you intervene and what kinds of ways are successful," said Poe.

The center will take in their first child on Sept. 4.

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out justice in such cases. Now an approach known as an individualized justice plan is gaining some traction as a way to hold people with intellectual disabilities accountable while providing alternatives to traditional forms of punishment.

Last year, Illinois lawmakers agreed to create a task force to look at the issue.

Charging people with intellectual disabilities can be complex because it’s unclear whether they could formulate the intent to kill, said Hugh Mundy, an associate professor at the John Marshall Law School.

“Every criminal (offense), or virtually every criminal offense, required a mental state in order to prove the element,” Mundy said. “It’s not just the act itself.”

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whether the registry will actually work when they really need it. As of November, 75,733 Texans were registered with STEAR, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. The registry allows people with disabilities and special medical needs to sign up to receive priority status for evacuations, shelters, wellness checks, power and water shutdowns and information on support services.

More than half of STEAR registrants have physical, sensory, mental health, cognitive, or intellectual needs that affect their ability to function independently. Many don’t have a vehicle and have no way to evacuate without assistance.

In a disaster, disabled people are more at risk: wheelchairs or walkers may be left behind during an evacuation, a shelter may not be able to fully accommodate needs like accessible showers for people with mobility impairment, quiet areas for people with autism or space for someone who weighs 350 pounds or more. Some cannot afford multiple nights in a hotel.

While the Texas Department of Public Safety’s Division of Emergency Management administers the registry, the agency does not provide direct services to STEAR registrants during emergencies. The agency’s webpage notes that there are no guarantees for help.

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The purchase is set to move forward after Gov. Phil Murphy on Friday signed legislation sponsored by state Sen. Joseph F. Vitale (D-19th District) authorizing the state treasurer to sell the parcel of state surplus real estate to the township.

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