Jonathan's Law is a New York state law signed in May 2007 by Governor Eliot Spitzer,[1] established procedures for the notification of parents and guardians of incidents affecting the health and well-being of children and certain adults residing in state-run facilities.
[2] Jonathan's Law was sponsored by Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg (D–Long Beach) and State Sen. Thomas P. Morahan (R–New City).
The law is named for Jonathan Carey, a child with autism and who was killed in 2007 by a direct care worker employed at the state-run facility where he lived.
The State of New York's Office for People With Developmental Disabilities prevented the family of Jonathan Carey from accessing records relating to their son, who had been diagnosed with autism.
In 2007, Jonathan was killed at age 13 by direct care worker Edwin Tirado of the O.D.