A 21-year-old staff member at the Anderson Center for Autism in Hyde Park is facing criminal charges after New York State Police say he choked a resident he was supposed to be caring for. Rojae Omario Rhone of Poughkeepsie was taken into custody on August 24 and issued an appearance ticket, with a court date set for September 2.
According to News12 New York, authorities were first notified of the incident on August 19. State police say Rhone placed a 21-year-old resident in a chokehold while he was assigned to care for that individual. He was charged with first-degree endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person, a felony, along with misdemeanor criminal obstruction of breathing or blood circulation, according to Daily Voice.
What the Charges Carry Under New York Law
The felony endangerment charge, under New York Penal Law § 260.25, is a Class E felony punishable by up to 1 1/3 to 4 years in state prison, per the Fast Law Firm. The misdemeanor obstruction charge, meanwhile, is punishable by up to 364 days in jail and a $1,000 fine under New York Penal Law § 121.11, part of the state's Strangulation Prevention Act, which does not require prosecutors to prove the resident suffered a physical injury, only that pressure was intentionally applied to the neck or throat.
The Anderson Center for Autism, founded in 1924, operates residential, educational, and clinical programs for autistic children and adults across Dutchess, Ulster, and Orange counties, according to The Daily Catch. The century-old nonprofit has now had multiple direct care staff members arrested on abuse-related charges within roughly the past year.
A Pattern of Arrests at the Same Facility
Rhone's arrest is not an isolated incident at the Hyde Park campus. In March, New York State Police arrested another Anderson Center employee, Melinda A. Dorn, after she allegedly flipped a couch twice while an autistic resident was lying on it, a case reported by Daily Voice that resulted in a charge of second-degree endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person.
The prior August, state police arrested 22-year-old staff member Deijeanae S. Edwards after she allegedly held a pillow against an autistic resident's face while restraining the individual's arm, according to FOX 5 New York. And in May 2025, former caregiver Garnet Collins was sentenced to 1 to 3 years in state prison after pleading guilty to felony endangerment for grabbing an autistic resident's testicles and striking another in the head during a June 2024 incident, a conviction that CBS News reports was aided by video evidence captured inside the facility.
Federal Lawsuit Alleges Systemic Failures
The pattern of arrests has drawn broader legal scrutiny. Parents of an autistic young adult filed a federal civil rights and disability discrimination lawsuit against the Anderson Center in U.S. District Court in January, alleging systemic failures to protect residents from employee abuse. As reported by CBS News, the lawsuit alleges staff mistreatment caused severe regression and post-traumatic stress disorder in the family's son.
Oversight of facilities like the Anderson Center falls to the NYS Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs, which maintains the Vulnerable Persons Central Register hotline and can place substantiated abusers on a permanent Staff Exclusion List barring them from future employment in the field. State lawmakers have also introduced legislation for the current session that would elevate criminal penalties, in some cases up to manslaughter, for people convicted of endangering vulnerable or disabled individuals when the conduct contributes to serious injury or suicide; Senate Bill S969 has been referred to the Senate Codes Committee.
It remains unclear what internal steps, if any, the Anderson Center has taken in response to the string of staff arrests. Rhone is due in court on September 2.
