Neighbors sue parents of autistic boy, call him “public nuisance”

“A neighbor boy who has continually attacked small children, including our own, culminating in a brutal and vicious attack on my son’s fourth birthday”, Flowers said. Santhanam and his wife Bindu were joined by Robert and Marci Flowers in a lawsuit filed last summer against their former next door neighboors Vidyut Gopal and Parul Agrawal.

Voicing her dismay in a case causing an uproar among Bay Area parents, a Santa Clara County judge on Tuesday chastised the parents of a boy with autism and their neighbors suing them over claims the boy’s aggressiveness made him a public nuisance, imploring them to end the ugliness and help their children learn a life lesson.

“We are glad the judge ordered the judicial settlement conference”, he told waiting reporters. And the family at the center of the lawsuit claims they did many things to try to control his behavior, including administering medications, hiring caregivers, and sending him to special classes-but nothing worked.

“This has always been about insuring that any kind of violence is held in check, and it’s the parent’s responsibility to make sure they do whatever it takes to prevent any acts of violence in the community”, said plaintiff Bindu Pothen.

The family of the autistic boy no longer lives in the neighborhood. They say the case isn’t about autism or the boy, it’s about the safety of their children. “I regret that it’s gotten to this point”. They sued and are trying to have the boy declared a public nuisance.

All parties have agreed to go to mediation.

“This has been pretty devastating for us, but we are doing our best to cope with it”, Gopal, an engineer at a Silicon Valley company, was quoted as saying. “I really look forward to meeting with Judge Walsh and hope we can all work together for a positive outcome”.

The plaintiffs are fighting for the release of the boy’s medical and school records.

Autism advocates worry this could set a disturbing precedent for families of children with autism.

Jill Escher, President of the Autism Society of San Francisco called the request extreme and egregious. But Folan put that issue aside and admonished them all to consider another alternative to resolve their dispute.