Autistic shooting victim still in hospital, mom wants justice

MORE than a month ago, 39-year-old Qhe Baisden was shot and wounded while walking along Bath Street in East Port of Spain after finishing work as a waiter at the Cascadia Hotel in St Ann’s. Today he is still at the Port of Spain General Hospital where he is receiving treatment.

According to eyewitness reports, Baisden, an autistic man, was shot by police officers when they attempted to disperse a crowd of protestors in the area.

Newsday spoke yesterday with his mother Joanna Baisden, who said he has shown signs of improvement since his treatment began, however she fears he may not be able to walk the same way again. She said the police investigation into her son’s shooting has ground to a halt as investigators are no longer returning her calls. Baisden wants the protocols guiding police on how to treat with mentally ill people to be reviewed.

She said she is happy her son is still alive, but other differently-abled people may not be as fortunate.

“A lot of people feel that just because they are handicapped, they cannot make a valuable contribution to society but that’s not true.

These people are the ones that have jobs and don’t complain about what they have to do or how long they have to work. Sometimes they make an even greater contribution than others.

“I remember that evening they sent him home from work early because they heard about the violence where we were living, but now after all this happened I think it was better they had kept him at work.

He’s recovering well from the gunshot.

“He’s really been through a lot because the doctors were saying that the bullet broke his leg, so they had to be very careful when removing the bullet fragments.

Right now he is sitting up and can move around to some extent, so I’m hoping that they are able to discharge him soon. He really just wants to come back home and for all this to be over.”

However, Baisden says the situation may be far from over as she is still unclear about the details surrounding her son’s shooting as both protesting residents and the police officers on duty at the time have not come forward to give their account of the incident.

She says despite extensive interviews by investigators after the incident in February, she is no closer to understanding who shot her son or why.

“We’re back to square one because we have to rely on who was around, but people aren’t coming forward. The Besson Street police questioned me, I was supposed to get a copy of the police report and up to now I can’t get it. I was also supposed to be interviewed by another detective who keeps postponing. All I have right now is the receipt, but I need to have a copy of the report.”

Baisden, who supports herself on her pension, said her son also contributes to the household by purchasing toiletries and other items, but says because of his wounds, he will have to stay away from work for a while and needs the police report in order to file for compensation.

She said she has already visited the Police Complaints Authority and was told an investigation into the shooting is underway.

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"Autistic shooting victim still in hospital, mom wants justice"

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