how do we keep them safe? AS son assaulted

[ThatVikRinA22]

this is the 2nd time in 18 months my adult aspie son has been assaulted.

i have no idea what to do (other than move??) i live in a small town, 18 months ago my son was robbed at knifepoint while walking home from the shop.

last night a large group of youths attacked him and his friend again as he walked home from the shop. they shouted "spacky xxxx" at his friend before attacking them. DS suffered a cut to his eyebrow and bruising to his cheek while trying to defend his mate.

im a special constable here, and about to start training as a police officer very shortly. we nipped back into town in the car, DS pointed out the group and the kid who attacked him, and i sat and watched while he got cuffed and frogmarched into a patrol car.
DS was very good and gave a brilliant statement, then we went to A&E to get him cleaned up. back home around 2am this morning.

but now im truly wondering how i can let him out of the house again. this comes after i had just managed to let go enough to let him go to scotland on his own for 4 days to a computer conference. The last attack had shaken him but he is very happy go lucky and had bounced back. im worried though this time. he is already saying he is worried about anyone saying anything to him (if they do it will be witness intimidation and he has been told to 999 it....but even so. he is scared)
his friend doesnt want to press charges.
ive taken today off work. im feeling very

My NT 16 year old son has been attacked and robbed at knife point, in broad day light in a busy High Street. He was also attacked in the school playground by a group of lads from a different school about 6 months ago!

Its terrible isnt it and very worrying. My 16 year old rarely goes out now.

Hope your ds is ok, you must be quite shaken

I suppose all you can do is take the usual precautions, mobile phone, what time will you be home etc, etc. Although i feel like arming my ds with a taser gun and pepper spray!

You know I don't actually know what can be done about this. Both my boys have been assulted as a result of ds2 differences.( AS).

I don't think moving area will solve it tbh I think it's everywhere and our children make obviously easy targets.
Both my boys do martial arts ( for fitness, social, confidence and body control) but that hasn't helped.

We are off to the station today for ds1 to make a statement about the last attack.. ( this originionally started because the lads who attacked him are family friends with the boys who attacked ds2.. And they have just moved it on).
We've had broken bones because of this.

I really do not know what the answer is.

I hope your ds is okay and can save some self worth and esteem.. He did so well and gave me hope for ds2 when I read about his computer conference adventure.

This is horrendous Your poor boys [cry]

my lad also used to do martial arts but it didnt help either, but it was 15 against 2.

im worried this is going to knock him. he was really stoic about getting mugged but this has clearly shaken him up.

i just dont get how anyone can be such a nasty little bastard, but getting him arrested was very satisfying. if nothing else he slept it off in a cell. his parents must be very proud to have raised such a nasty vile little shitbag.

DS got up for the police photographer this morning but has gone back to bed.

Ds did martial arts too!

The gang of about 20 boys who climbed over ds's school fence and went into the school playground, picked on ds because he is so quiet.

The martial arts did help, as he hit one of them back and knocked him out, but wait for it..........ds got arrested and the boy who he hit, who had climbed over ds's school fence to start trouble, got taken to hospital and was the 'victim', while ds sat in a cell and had his injuries treated there

Is it the case that if assaults can be said to be motivated by the victim's disability/difference, they count as hate crimes, i.e. they go up a notch in legal terms?

sc13, yes. The police and Courts etc have been told to really take disability hate crime seriously now. They're being measured on it. Trouble is, not all of them know a thing about how to stop us runnning away from court because it's so scary.

I've been assaulted because of my disability, and stalked, and harassed, and sent hate mail...but couldn't access police or courts because no way can I manage it. It's a huge problem.

Safety...I wish I knew...

In theory I'm guessing it should notch it up.. But you have to have the evidence that it was the cause.. And with these nasty little toerags in their gangs against one person they just say it wasn't the case.. With no-one as witness to say any different.
None of them are going to say what they actually said... And without witnesses .. There seems little one can do about it.
Also there is the issue in ds2 case ( broken bones).. Where the lad ( and ds2 ) at the time was under ten.. And so nothing could be done about it.

Ds1 is usually with a group of friends when he goes out.. But they attacked when he had just left them and was on his own againt ten or more.

Ds2 now doesn't go out.. Although webave just enrolled him in drama classes to help with the social going out bit.

he has just asked me to give him a lift to the bank he didnt want to walk.

why cant you just walk down the bloody street without nasty little scumbag pissheads throwing punches for no reason?

he has missed 3 calls on his phone which i am thinking could be the police. id like to know whats happened.

i have just realised that neither of us has eaten a crumb all day.

so late lunch or early dinner?
and wine. (later i hasten to add)
i should have been going out for dinner tonight with friends which ive cancelled.

and my manager at work has just been super lovely about me not going in, which makes me feel even more guilty as im about to give notice....

Do look after yourselves tonight.. Don't feel bad about work ( easier said than done I know).. And I'm hoping you have a large glass of wine in hand as I type.

Well ds1 did his statement.. And he's been told that 1 is going to be arrested for incitement, 1 for aggravated harrasement and criminal damage and 1 for assult...

We'll see how that goes and hopefully it will put an end to it..

same back at you TheArsenicCupCake. glad youve got your ordeal semi out of the way in that at least the statement is done. really hope your boys attackers are charged.

ive no idea whats happened in our case. it feels wrong to try and phone and find out because i worked there up until sunday as a special, i dont want to put anyone in an awkward position.

really hope this is the end of it for you. my lad seems to be a magnet for nutters.

we are gonna take it easy tonight. hope you can too.

Aw Vic - that's truly shocking. You know I've been through the same when that B**stard tried to strangle DS last year.

I insisted the Police treated it as a hate crime. But, as you say. I had the satisfaction of seeing the nasty shit arrested and let out on Police Bail to sweat while the CPS decided whether to prosecute.

They investigated but as there were no witnesses it was his word against the thug's it didn't go to Court. I also lodged a claim with the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board.

Get him a car and he can drive past them.

hey witty, i thought of you and your lads attack.

yep he needs to get back on track with the driving, definitely.

the most this kid will get is a section 39 assualt (though it was actually more than that - the charges always get downgraded)

its likely he would be bailed pending further enquiries. DS statement was really good though and consistent with is injuries. if nothing else he spent an uncomfortable night on a very thin mattress in the juvenile cell.

im hoping its on CCTV and hoping DS friend will give a good account via video evidence (because he is under 18 and vulnerable they will do it via VVO)

but at the end of the day all i want is for DS to be able to go out without getting assaulted. ive no idea why thats too much to ask.

Trouble is that it happens when you least expect it

I worry less now he drives himself about but I still worry. We can't protect them all the time . The Police did give the thug who attacked mine a very strong warning to stay well away from him in future - which he seems to have listened to.

I hope it hasn't put D off getting out and about. The trip to Scotland was awesome

i do keep getting lulled into a false sense of security, i forget he has SN until he does something glaringly obvious.

he hasnt left the house today other than asking me to drive him to the bank. he isnt himself. he is meant to be going back to scotland in august to sort out this website and booking system for the guest house he stayed at. im having kittens.

why cant they just get left alone - friend on facebook has just emailed to say her son has been attacked 3 times since easter.

another SN friend he was meant to be going to see today is agoraphobic. i am truly getting sick and tired of hearing how many of our kids get assaulted just because they have SEN.
i dont want him to have to have me tail his every move. its so worrying though.

How did I miss this last night?
So sorry Vic, and you're right that it shouldn't be too much to ask just to be able to walk around the streets without being beaten up by random idiots out for bloodsports and hunting those that are different. Claw's son being blamed for defending himself is insane.
My DS goes for long walks on his own in the evenings, but it's a small town and people know him. Despite all my civilizin', he still responds with pure rage and force when he's scared and so the jackals leave him be.
It will be a different story in a year or two when he's off to college, so you have my sympathy and my fear for his future as well.
Certainly it's a hate crime to attack because of difference. Hope he regains his confidence and enthusiasm for being independent.
Can he drive yet?

no driving yet - i think he really struggled with it and didnt put up much resistance when college suggested he drop it for a while - it was interfering with his studies.

he really needs to get back to it though. i think i will ring round locally - he was doing lessons in free periods at college but when he got behind he had to use those free periods for study.

i wish DS response was rage. id have been happy if he had flattened the little bastards personally though im probably not allowed to say that....