An upsetting video of a staffer kicking a male resident in an East Islip, N.Y., group home, exclusively reported this week by longisland.news12.com, has horrified families across the state.

For many, such stories of abuse point to the question of whether surveillance cameras should be used in group homes.

In New York, an Administrative Directive from the Office of People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) reads, in part: “The use of video cameras and other monitoring and/or recording technology are generally prohibited in OPWDD operated, OPWDD certified and provider-owned or controlled residential settings.”

In 2019, a bill was introduced in the New York State Assembly and Senate requiring providers of residential services to developmentally disabled children to have surveillance cameras in the common areas of their residential facilities. It’s been sitting In Committee.

I reached out to New York’s Chief Disability Officer Kimberly Hill with a link to the Long Island abuse incident and asked to hear her thoughts on the bill. A spokesperson wrote back noting only that “we will review any legislation that passes both houses of the Legislature.”

In this week’s Q&A with New Jersey Disability Ombudsman Paul Aronsohn, he noted that surveillance cameras are allowed in New Jersey state-licensed residencies, but not mandated. (Read more about his thoughts on cameras and other issues here.)

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