ALBANY, N.Y., Oct. 1 (UPI) -- A New York state assemblyman says he plans to sue the facility where his handicapped son allegedly was abused as well as the worker who allegedly abused him.
Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg said the suit is not for money but "to have it be known and have something be done about it," The New York Times reported Sunday.
Weisenberg's 54-year-old son, Ricky, is a patient at AHRC Nassau where the alleged abuse occurred. The suit also names Dwayne Edwards, the AHRC employee, the alleged abuser.
Edwards was fired from the facility and now works as a caregiver at the United Cerebral Palsy Association of Nassau County, says the suit, which was due to be filed Monday in Brooklyn federal court.
In an interview, Edwards denied he ever abused Ricky Weisenberg.
The assemblyman said he learned of the alleged abuse three years ago, and his son, who has cerebral palsy and a severe mental disability, is still a client at AHRC Nassau.
Legislation passed in Albany this year, and awaiting Gov. Andrew Cuomo's signature, would help prevent the rehiring of abusive workers by creating a registry of workers in public and private care facilities.
