HAMPTONBURGH – A former driver for Orange AHRC, who left a non-verbal man with autism in an unheated van for five hours in January of last year, was sentenced to a conditional discharge. Robert Kastman, 62, of Campbell Hall, pled guilty to attempted endangering the welfare of an incompetent of physically disabled person, a misdemeanor.
Kastman has been terminated from his job.
The case was investigated by the New York State Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs.
The conviction stems from Kastman’s “failure to follow proper procedures when he neglected to check the van for passengers at the end of his shift,” said Special Prosecutor Patricia Gunning. “Fortunately, the victim came through the ordeal unharmed, but the case serves as an important reminder of the serious risk posed by leaving people with special needs unattended in vehicles. The danger is particularly acute during the summer months when temperatures inside vehicles can soar to potentially deadly levels in a matter of minutes.”
