Ronald Halk Padlocked Schizophrenic Son In Room

[Whisper]

I'm on the fence here but I dont know alot of the info
But to me almost sounds like dad wanted his son safe
Although it was the wrong way that he went about it


Child Had Access To Food, Water, Restroom, Police Say
KISSIMMEE, Fla. --
Kissimmee police arrested a man on charges of false imprisonment, child abuse and domestic violence on Friday.

Ronald M. Halk, 43, is accused of locking his 13-year-old son in his bedroom for extended periods of time on a daily basis, police said.
Police said Halk installed a sliding door on his son's room and padlocks so the child was not able to leave the room.

Halk would provide food and water and the child had access to a restroom, investigators said. They said Halk's son suffers from childhood schizophrenia and other mental disorders.

Halk has been taken to the Osceola County Jail, where he is being held without bond.
[...]

http://www.wesh.com/news/23799257/detail.html

Ronald M. Halk

[Valasca]

13. Has a doctor diagnosed this young man with schizophrenia? It's possible. This would be right around the age where it starts to appear. My own brother began his descent at age 15, so maybe.

I agree, he was likely trying to keep him safe, not realizing there were other options, like having him committed to a psych ward, at least for a couple of days till he could get on medication.

This is newsworthy, but not FP worthy in my opinion.

[Cholita]

I can't imagine the stress and pain parents of children with these conditions go through. And poor poor kids!

[akika666]

I can't imagine the stress and pain parents of children with these conditions go through. And poor poor kids!

yes i totally agree. there but for the grace of God. and there's not much help or support for these families either. it's a nightmare.

this guy chose a very bad way to handle it but i don't know what his options were. the severity of this behavior would depend on that.

[Countess Olenska]

Childhood Schizophrenia is much rarer and much harder to treat. The doses required to control hallucinations and panic have to be higher than adults dealing with the same disease.

This sort of illness is without reason. There is no talking down a child like this when they go manic. It just has to be ridden out. It seems to me this man was struggling with ways to cope as an individual and assure his sons safety with little support.

Admissions to psyche wards are a continuing thing to adjust medicine and work at finding solutions or keys to treating them on a case by case basis. Like autism, what works for one may not be kosher for another. There isn't a set road map to the brain that is malfunctioning universally so you can't just treat it like you would a standard acute illness.

Watching someone waste away due to leukemia is less traumatic than not being able to even connect with your own child. There's no rational way to do it. Schizophrenia is anything but rational.

[Valasca]

Schizophrenia is anything but rational.

Understatment. And that's the truth, too.
I've got stories...

[akika666]

how does this amount to a charge of "domestic violence?" am i missing something?

[Countess Olenska]

Understatment. And that's the truth, too.
I've got stories...

My father was raised by a Paranoid Schizophrenic. I carry his childhood wounds by association. It doesn't just go away either.

:) You rock Amazon!

[Valasca]

how does this amount to a charge of "domestic violence?" am i missing something?

If you could just see how a schizo acts. they do get violent. I am betting he hit his father to try to get out, or... something. Dad probably either slapped him back without thinking or restrained the kid.
There is also the issue of "false imprisonment". I think in some states false imprisonment of your own family falls under domestic violence, but I could be wrong about that.

[akika666]

If you could just see how a schizo acts. they do get violent. I am betting he hit his father to try to get out, or... something. Dad probably either slapped him back without thinking or restrained the kid.
There is also the issue of "false imprisonment". I think in some states false imprisonment of your own family falls under domestic violence, but I could be wrong about that.

oh i know how they can act... most of my professional career was as a shrink on involuntary inpatient units. believe me, i've been smacked, kicked, nailed with objects and even spermed on. that's why i know it would be a nightmarish situation to have your child fall victim to this terrible illness.

i meant, how would these given facts add up to domestic violence? i can see the false imprisonment and abuse/neglect charges... there is nothing in this report that i see as violence. but then again, criminal charges sometimes have broad qualifications.

[Valasca]

well, duh. i just realized this is florida... so...
domestic violence and child abuse would be the combined charge for locking him up. simple as that.
BUT... it clearly states he had food, liquids and a bathroom.

I still don't see what the problem is... I do feel like he was just protecting his son... as well as any babysitters he could have found.

[akika666]

well, duh. i just realized this is florida... so...
domestic violence and child abuse would be the combined charge for locking him up. simple as that.
BUT... it clearly states he had food, liquids and a bathroom.

I still don't see what the problem is... I do feel like he was just protecting his son... as well as any babysitters he could have found.

i know what you mean. but legally it's imprisonment to lock someone up without orders from a judge or court. that's why we shrinks can't keep someone involuntarily past 48-72 hours (usually, depending on the state) without a judge's O.K. (generally a rubber stamp, but it's leeeegal).

[Whisper]

One of my friends has 2 boys with this and they are in their 20s now
but I remember the calls in the middle of the night to come and get her with 1 or both trying to kill themselves or each other when they were as young as 9
It was hell and as she was a single parent and dad was no where to be seen it all fell on her,she herself bipolar
Here even at 10 if the boys didn't want to be admitted for 72 hours they didn't have to be
You have to admit yourself as per Ontario laws as of about 15 yrs ago or more
So that blows and even then they dont want to admit kids here b/c of cuts we have no child's psych wards here except for maybe 3 in all of Ontario
In the city here of 1/4 million people here are 10 beds for kids
My son starts back in Aug here at the university for Psychiatrist and his work load just the first 2 yrs is unbelievable but like his mom he think s he can save the world

[akika666]

One of my friends has 2 boys with this and they are in their 20s now
but I remember the calls in the middle of the night to come and get her with 1 or both trying to kill themselves or each other when they were as young as 9
It was hell and as she was a single parent and dad was no where to be seen it all fell on her,she herself bipolar
Here even at 10 if the boys didn't want to be admitted for 72 hours they didn't have to be
You have to admit yourself as per Ontario laws as of about 15 yrs ago or more
So that blows and even then they dont want to admit kids here b/c of cuts we have no child's psych wards here except for maybe 3 in all of Ontario
In the city here of 1/4 million people here are 10 beds for kids
My son starts back in Aug here at the university for Psychiatrist and his work load just the first 2 yrs is unbelievable but like his mom he think s he can save the world

inpatient care for children is very hard to come by. there was a huge scandal before my time, like the mid 80's, in which a for-profit hospital chain exploited adolescent inpatients for their insurance benefits, and in the wake of that abuse, many other children's inpatient beds were closed. (along with all the general inpatient psych wards that were closed the 80's)

good luck to your son. it's very hard, and can be thankless. he will learn he can't save the world, but hopefully will also learn that making one person's life better can MEAN the world, and it feels really awesome when you do it.