Families, friends, and advocates, we urgently need your voice to end the use of abusive “therapy” — including electric shock, forced restraints, food deprivation, and more — on disabled children and adults. On Tuesday, November 18, 2025 (1–5pm), the Joint Committee on Children, Families, and Persons with Disabilities will hold a public hearing on Bill H.245, which would outlaw painful aversive procedures in all facilities serving people with disabilities.
Why Is This Bill Needed?
Electric Shock Torture: The Judge Rotenberg Center (JRC) in Massachusetts is the only facility in the U.S. still using powerful electric shocks, via the Graduated Electronic Decelerator (GED), for minor infractions such as crying or speaking out. Residents report lasting physical injury—burns, blisters, scarring—and trauma, including constant anxiety, nightmares, and PTSD.
Forced Restraints & Sensory Deprivation: Children and adults are strapped to restraint boards for hours or days, and forced to wear vision/hearing-limiting helmets—sometimes even while being shocked. Instances include a resident dying from asphyxiation during sensory deprivation.
Food and Sleep Denial: Programs using aversive methods withhold food as a “behavioral consequence,” sometimes providing only noxious “makeup food” like blended liver powder. Residents have been denied nutritious food, sleep, shelter, and bathroom access—basic human necessities.
Coercion and Institutional Trauma: Families and survivors describe manipulation, retaliation against critics, documented abuse from staff, and residents being shocked for involuntary or trivial behaviors. Many experience profound betrayal trauma—the harm of being abused by institutions meant to protect them.
The Evidence Is Overwhelming
Extensive official investigations, UN condemnation, and testimony from survivors and experts all show that these aversive interventions are not accepted medical practice and are considered inhumane and ineffective. Major disability and behavioral health organizations, including ABAI and the ACLU, have rejected shock and other painful aversives. There are humane alternatives—positive behavior supports, trauma-informed care, and family-centered approaches—that offer safety and dignity without torture.
Hearing Information and Participation
Date/Time: Tuesday, November 18, 2025, 1–5pm
Location: State House, 24 Beacon St, Boston, MA, Room A2 (hybrid in-person/virtual)
Sign-up for Oral Testimony: Online Form by Friday, November 14, 3pm. Same-day, in-person speakers accepted; virtual sign-up is not available after Friday.
Written Testimony: Email to the Joint Committee for Children and Families (accepted until bill is acted on).
Testimony Guidance: For suggested points and background, see Testimony Key Points and Hearing Details.
Accessibility: Entrance at Ashburton Park (95 Bowdoin St). For accommodations, contact Olivia Mathot (Olivia.mathot@masenate.gov) or Audrey Herrmann (Audrey.Herrmann@mahouse.gov).
Why This Matters
H.245 is a direct response to revelations about lasting physical and psychological trauma caused by shock devices and aversive methods, used most prominently at the Judge Rotenberg Center in Massachusetts. Survivors and advocates have spoken out about burns, nerve damage, and extreme psychological distress resulting from these procedures. The bill is a major step toward ending such practices and ensuring humane, respectful treatment for all people with disabilities in institutional settings.
Take Action!
Send a Prewritten Letter: Urge legislators to support Bill H.245 and protect disabled individuals.
Support the Cause: Donate for outreach, education, event expenses, and accessibility.
Learn More: The Stop the Shock website.
Need Help: Reach out to Courtney Litzinger.
Your advocacy can help end decades of abuse and ensure disabled people in Massachusetts receive humane, respectful, and evidence-based care. Institutions must never be permitted to torture or deprive people of their fundamental rights. The time to act is now—stand together to Stop the Shock.
The Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint strongly urges all supporters, disability advocates, and concerned citizens to participate in the hearing and spread the word. Your voice and action are critical—let’s speak together for dignity, safety, and respect for disabled children and adults.
