Posted on 07/21/2009 1:57:38 AM PDT by South40
He was diagnosed with autism, had received counseling for an attraction to child pornography and lived in a group home. Still, a recruiter thought that Joshua Fry had what it took to be one of “the few, the proud, the Marines.”
Pvt. Fry, who spent the last year in the brig at Camp Pendleton on charges of possessing child pornography, leaving base without authorization and concealing his psychiatric history, was discharged today from the Marines for bad conduct and sentenced to four years confinement.
Although the case has been settled and a verdict handed down, disturbing questions about exactly how an autistic man with such a troubled past ended up in the Marines remain unanswered.
If allegations made by Fry’s defense attorney in a 35 page motion to dismiss obtained by the LA Times and ABC News are correct, then Fry was coached to lie about his past by an army recruiter who had befriended him.
Fry was not only instructed to omit information about his mental history from recruitment papers, but he was picked up from a group home in Irvine by the recruiter and driven to a recruitment station, according to defense documents obtained by the LA Times.
(Excerpt) Read more at taxdollars.freedomblogging.com ...
This is simply a case of “don’t ask, don’t tell” being taken to its logical extreme. Kind of odd that he survived boot camp but if he went to MCRD San Diego, it is said that basic training there is not as tough and demanding as on Parris Island.
As a former Marine Corps recruiter, I am absolutely amazed this kid wasn’t handed off to the Army Recruiter like we did in the day.
What say you about post #2, Sir?
Looks like it was handled just fine - except he never should have been accepted into any branch of the service.
The diagnosis of ‘autism’ ain’t what it used to be.
“Autism” is now a giant industry in the schools designed to get extra federal funding for students.
Sure, there are actual children with true autism but if you child does not do well in school because their parents don’t invest the time in them... They get classified as ‘autistic’ and are now capable of extra tutoring and attention on the public dime.
He was diagnosed with autism, had received counseling for an attraction to child pornography and lived in a group home. Still, a recruiter thought that Joshua Fry had what it took to be one of “the few, the proud, the Marines
WHOA. I know few people that are more supportive of the US military then I am, but the soldier who recruited this young man should be arrested and confined to the brig for life. Autism and child porhongraphy equates to the few the proud the marines? What the hell was he thinking besides keeping his recruitment stats up.....
Bingo. Where there's money to be handed out - the usual suspects line up. IN this case - the unionized school system...
A myth perpetuated by the ignorant.
Remember, Fantasy Island is where women become enlisted Marines.
If true then the army needs to placed under the same scrutiny as the Corps. Although, everything I've read about this indicates that the responsible party, aka perp, is one Gunnery Sergeant Matthew Teson.
Jessica Terrell has got her facts wrong.
Here is another case of someone mocking what they don’t understand. The people who make sarcastic comments like this one are clueless about what it takes to raise and educate child with special needs. I’m the mother of one of those children who was diagnosed with Autism. Are you trying to tell me that 5 professionals trained in the field of neurological disorders AND my kid’s pediatrician has misdiagnosed my child? What authority do you have to make such a claim? Oh, and we do this just so my kid’s school can receive extra tax money? It is insensitivity and ignorance like this that perpetuates discrimination in our society. Had Fry received treatment at a young age, not been allowed to slip through the cracks of society and be thrown into a group home, it is likely we wouldn’t be discussing this now.
As a PI Marine, I'd have to say I agree.
I was never issued sunglasses at PI.
On a serious note...there has to be more to this than what is reported.
When I was in the Marine Corps, testing took place at 1)the recruiter's office, 2) AFEES - the local induction center 3) On arrival at Boot Camp.
The Recruiter could only possibly influence the results of the first screening test.
Something is amiss, considering we're hearing mostly the defense side of this case I'd like to read the whole episode.
You people disgust me. Do you really think schools go around slapping labels on kids to get extra federal funding? Do you have any contact with the school system in your hometown? The lack of respect being shown here for people with Autism and special needs sickens me. The fact of the matter is that behaviors that interfere with a child’s ability to learn are suspect to teachers. The federal government puts a lot of pressure on our schools via standarized testing to produce successful students. Kids who 20 years ago would have just fallen through the cracks are now receiving intervention to help them be more successful adults. Statistics show that kids who don’t receive intervetion end up in the criminal justice system. Take Mr. Fry for example...
Well. At least you did not put him before the firing squad /s
GET A GRIP!
One of the things not mentioned here is that people with Autism often become hyper-focused on a subject, especially if it is something inappropriate. It is a totally different situation from your regular perv. who may suffer from a chemical imbalance obsessive compulsive disorder. You have to understand first that people with high-functioning Autism, while being highly intelligent, have a child-like quality to them. It comes from a different place and it’s hard to explain. You have to know someone with the disorder to understand. Yes, it is wrong, but Fry is not your classic perv on the street. Incarcerating him for 4 years is a miscarriage of justice. Isolation is the worst thing for him. Sadly, he will be far worse off when he is released.
It is easier with people with high-functioning Autism to go along with what is being asked of them than to say no. They avoid confrontation. This is why they are so vulnerable to being taken advantage of. My guess is that he saw the man in uniform and did what was asked of him, not thinking he had a choice, even though he was given opportunites to walk away. He didn’t want to disappoint anyone.
I'm in favor of helping autistic children - but any child with a behavior problem isn't necessarily autistic. And that's the reason for the funding. Good people decided money should go for children who are autistic - not for every kid who wants to climb on that bandwagon - with teachers and "professionals" dumbing down the definition for extra cash.
If your husband asked if he could spend money outside the family budget for medical care - you would cheerfully agree - I'm sure. But if he broadened the definition to include good mental health - and defined that as being happy having sex with a hooker once a week - you might feel - well - taken. Fooled. Played for a fool. Scammed.
It's called giving and inch and having someone take a mile.
If parents of poorly behaved children want the taxpayers to bail out their parenting skills or lack of same - they can petition the taxpayers and see if the rest of us want to help with that burden.
But to assume that when taxpayers agree to help autistic children that they should be played for fools - to be forced to take care of children dumped in daycare and left to watch TV when not in daycare - the answer is NO.
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