A 17 year-old boy has been ordered to complete in-home treatment and probation, for a domestic violence charge stemming from hitting his mother, though his mother had pushed for a sterner sentence that involved him being sent away to a residential treatment facility, as reported by the Jackson Citizen Patriot.
A few days prior to Z.M.'s sentencing, his mother, S.M., had told reporters, "He either gets residential treatment, and we have a son and a productive member of society. Or he doesn't get the treatment he needs, and we lose him completely. And we don't want to lose (Z.M.)."
Z.M. suffers with atypical autism pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified. He also suffers with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, ADHD, per his psychiatrist Dr. A.W.
Z.M. admitted to punching his mother, and pounding the back off her head until it bled, on November 16 when she turned off his Internet as he had gone past an agreed upon cutoff time.
Dr. A.W. stated that Z.M. doesn't transition from one activity to another very well, oftentimes having "catastrophic reactions" that can be violent.
This was Z.M.'s fourth outburst in the home where police had to be called in.
Z.M., 16 at the time of the incident, was removed from the home and placed in Jackson County Youth Center. He will now be headed home.
Though S.M. had been hopeful that her son would be ordered to a residential treatment center, the outcome did not surprise her. She said, "I'm optimistic. It's in his court now."
Susan Murphy, the referee in the juvenile case, said, "I know we need to help (Z.M.) get ready for independent living." She added that since this was Z.M.'s first occurrence the court would not immediately act to remove him from the home and place him into a program. Their first course of treatment would be the least restrictive to work to change his behavior patterns.
Murphy told Z.M.'s parents that she thought long and hard about the case, and fully understood the frustrations that the family had been experiencing.
S.M. had asked Murphy to send her son to the Montcalm School for Boys in Albion. As the family is unable to pay for the tuition they were looking for tax dollars for that now – as opposed to incarceration later.
Both Z.M.'s psychiatrist and other medical professionals are in agreement with S.M. in regards to Z.M. benefiting from the Montcalm School.
S.M. said, "Children with autism are capable of extraordinary things. My child has autism. He is not autism."
Z.M. has been ordered to three months of probation, must attend school, show good behavior, and follow family rules and curfews. The program he will attend at home, known as Lifeways, also requires that he write a letter of apology to his mother for his violent outburst.
Z.M. will be back for a hearing with Murphy in a month to monitor his progress.
Contact a Family Law attorneyif you are facing domestic violence charges. Although this case involved a minor and was overseen by a referee, your case may be viewed differently.