Body of Autistic Boy From Queens Found

This blog stays on the cases it reports,so it informs you that the body of a young teenage boy,Avonte Oquendo,14,who had been missing since October 2013,was found by a young woman on January 16 along the rocky banks of the East River in Queens,New York.The bones were identified on January 21 by DNA testing that matched his remains with relatives'samples.His striped shirt and Air Jordan sneakers were also found at the scene.
The remains of the boy,who was severely autistic and could not speak,were located several miles northeast of Riverside School,where video captured his exit from a side door when a security guard stopped him from leaving the front way.No cause of death had been determined,the Medical Examiner said.*
The case is actually not unique.Like Alzheimer's patients,autistic children are given to elopement,or wandering off at the slightest opportunity-sometimes with fatal consequences.This blog discovered there have been several similar cases in recent years.It stands to reason that their poor communication skills and having no comprehension of danger can get them into serious trouble.
Death by drowning is a common theme in these cases.Near Montreal in May 2011,the body of three year-old Adam Benhamama was found near the banks of the Mille-Illes River in Terrebonne,Quebec more than a month after he disappeared.He had vanished while playing with his seven year-old sister when his father stepped into a friend's house for a minute.
On May 19,2013,the body of seven year-old Owen Elliot Black was found floating in the water off Perdido Key,Florida.The initial massive sea,air and land searches for the blonde child had yielded nothing.He had been vacationing with his mother when he slipped away.
It is believed that water attracts such children because it soothes their overstimulated nervous systems.At the same time,it is impossible for caregivers to be on top of them every single minute.The children know this,and many of them seize the few opportunities they get to explore their surroundings.Some have proposed tracking the children with GPS as a solution;others say we should not treat them like wildlife that way.*
This blog offers its deepest sympathy to the families and friends of these children.

Autistic New York Boy Still Missing

The disappearance of Avonte Oquendo,14,from his Queens high school on the afternoon of October 4 has become a major incident as police and rescue personnel in New York and other states comb the region for the missing autistic teen.Metropolitan Transit Authority police are thoroughly searching subway stations at the beginning of each shift,and many volunteers have joined in the effort.Avonte is reportedly fond of trains,and police suggest he may have boarded one.
There is a $77,500 reward for information on where Avonte is.Police and rescue vehicles are playing a recording of his mother's voice asking him to approach the flashing lights on the vehicles.A school safety officer told Avonte to go back upstairs when he approached the front door of Center Boulevard School in Long Island City.Avonte,who does not speak,turned and went down another hallway,exiting the school by a side door,surveillance video shows.
It is common for autistic children to wander,throwing their families into an uproar.The Oquendo family has filed a Notice of Claim-the first step in a lawsuit against the City of New York.
Avonte is described as being black,five-foot-three inches tall and weighing about 120 pounds,and was last seen wearing a grey striped shirt,black jeans and black sneakers.If you know anything about him,please call the NYPD Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-577-TIPS.