Ban On Shock Devices At Canton School Included In U.S. House Bill

CANTON, MA — An effort to ban the use of electric shock devices in schools cleared its first hurdle in the U.S. House of Representatives Thursday. Language was added to a sweeping federal spending bill that would pull Department of Education funding from any institution using shock therapy.

The legislation is aimed at one Massachusetts school: the Judge Rotenberg Educational Center in Canton, which is believed to be the only institution in the country that uses electric shocks on its students.

Congresswoman Katherine Clark, who previously sued the school as an attorney for the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care, championed for the provision's inclusion in the bill.

"I’ve been working for over a decade to stop the use of electric shock devices in schools. And finally this week, I secured language in the @AppropsDems bill to do just that," Clark tweeted Friday. "No student should be subjected to this dangerous and horrific practice."

Earlier this month, the U.S. Court of Appeals overturned the FDA's ban on Electrical Stimulation Devices, paving the way for their continued use at the school.

The practice was banned in March 2020 after a video surfaced of a student getting shocked for not putting his coat on, sparking widespread controversy over the treatment. The Appeals Court overturned the ban in a 2-1 decision July 6.

The ruling allows the school to continue delivering electric shocks to some adult residents to correct aggressive behavior and help prevent self-injuries when other alternatives fail.

While advocates for the disabled are calling this practice "torture," WCVB reported that parents of the intellectually disabled at the school say the shocks are a life-saving treatment and the only thing that works.

Patch has reached out to the center for comment.