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New Orleans: Mental illness punishable by death
by Roberto C.
Friday, Mar. 16, 2007 at 6:09 PM
NEW ORLEANS, LA – On Thursday, March 8, 2007, Terry Burton, aged 53, was killed by the National Guard Military Police. Mr. Burton was mentally ill and the third such person murdered by law enforcement in a city with no mental health services.
NEW ORLEANS, LA – On Thursday, March 8, 2007, Terry Burton, aged 53, was killed by the National Guard Military Police. According to the NOPD release of information to the public, at some time in the early hours of March 8th, 2007 Terry Burton was confronted by the National Guard when a presumed altercation took place resulting in Mr. Burton being shot in the chest multiple times while in his home.
Mr. Burton was mentally ill and the third such person murdered by law enforcement in a city with no mental health services. It is not known why the National Guard killed Mr. Burton but as his family mourns his senseless death in the midst of their struggle to return to New Orleans and rebuild their lives, they also struggle to pull together the funds to give Mr. Burton a proper burial.
Friend and neighbor Louis Keller speaks about Terry’s death: "Terry was not a violent person, he was a person who preached love and tolerance. He was a man suffering from an untreated mental illness and had been actively seeking assistance, but with the lack of mental health resources available in the city he was left with no help. This was a man who had a knowledge base out of this world and had so much to offer, he just had a hard time communicating with other people sometimes because of his illness. It was probably what created the confusion with the National Guard."
The Burton Family is calling on the New Orleans community and all its supporters outside the city to make donations to assist them in providing Terry Burton with a funeral service. The family is also seeking funds or donated sky miles so that they may bring Terry’s closest living relative, his brother Michael Burton, back to New Orleans from Wisconsin so that he may pay his last respects and lead his family in their fight for justice for Terry and all of New Orleans’ vulnerable peoples, especially the mentally ill.
Pleas send all donations to:
Ada Burns
822 Sumner St.
New Orleans, LA 70114
504-366-9480
Please indicate in the memo line of your checks that these donations are for the Terry Burton Memorial Fund. For questions or offers to donate sky miles, please contact Ada Burns at the same address and phone number.
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