Ethan Saylor

On January 12th 2013 Ethan Saylor went to watch “Zero Dark Thirty” with his carer. He never came home. We remember him today on World Down Syndrome Day.

Robert Ethan Saylor, known as Ethan, was 26 years old, and lived in Frederick, Maryland. His family writes “He was a brother, son, grandson, and beloved family member and friend. He was a faithful church member. He loved reggae music and was a law enforcement enthusiast. He also had Down syndrome.”

After watching the film, Ethan’s carer left to bring the car around. Ethan waited briefly by the door for her to return, before re-entering the movie theater. The theater manager informed him that he needed to buy another ticket – but Ethan didn’t understand or know how to use money.

He sat quietly in the theater and apparently used his phone to “try and find a solution” – but while he sat there, the manager asked security to remove him. Three Sheriff Deputies, who were moonlighting as security guards – Lt. Scott Jewell, Sgt. Rich Rochford, and Deputy First Class James Harris, a 10-year veteran – entered the theater to remove Ethan. Ethan idolised law enforcement – he had previously called 911 “just to chat” with what he presumed were police officers – but the deputies who came to remove him were off duty, so were not wearing their uniforms.

Ethan’s carer was not allowed to re-enter the theater to calm him down or wait with him, but she was heard screaming that he had Down syndrome and did not like to be touched. Her advice was ignored, and when one of the deputies put his hands on Ethan he responded by shouting and possibly by lashing out himself. The deputies then began trying to drag Ethan out of the theater – this was difficult as he weighed around 300 pounds. They forced him to the floor, with one of them putting his knee in Ethan’s back, and handcuffed him using three sets of cuffs. While on the floor Ethan yelled “Mommy, it hurts – I want my mommy!” – his mom, Patti, was on her way to collect him at the time.

Ethan died on the floor of the movie theater. His death was ruled a homicide.

Ethan’s autopsy report notes numerous injuries, including cuts and bruises to his face, injuries to his wrists – and, shockingly, fractured cartilage in his throat, an injury more consistent with manual strangulation than choking.

As Stephen Greenspan writes, “with his obvious facial features and clearly impaired speech, behavior and intellect, he might as well have been wearing a sign around his neck saying ‘I have Down Syndrome and have an intellectual disability, so please handle me with kindness.’” Despite Ethan very clearly having Down syndrome, all three deputies insisted that they didn’t know.

The attorney for the three deputies, Daniel Karp, shamefully dismissed Ethan’s family’s emotional statements as “the familiar hyperbole of a plaintiff that is suing for money.” The Saylors insist that they were suing not for money, but to understand what happened to Ethan.

Ethan’s family eventually settled their lawsuit for $1.9m, but more importantly their settlement included a requirement in Maryland for all law enforcement officers to be trained in how to interact with people with intellectual disabilities.

We will cover Ethan’s death in a future episode of Version of Events.