Today three gunmen entered Inland Regional Center and opened fire. Inland is one of California’s 21 non-profit regional centers that provide assessment, case management, and other direct services for over 280,000 people with developmental disabilities and their families. They also purchase and coordinate community-based services and supports. Developmental disabilities include autism, epilepsy, cerebral palsy, and intellectual disabilities.
The entire developmental services community is rallying around regional center employees, families, and people with developmental disabilities. Their safety is our paramount concern.
Regional centers are coordinating with law enforcement agencies to ensure the safety of their employees and the communities they serve. There are no known threats against other regional centers. However, out of an abundance of caution, eight centers have closed early today.
Today, multiple people were shot and killed. We do not have official information as to the names of the victims, the intended targets, or the motives behind this. As we receive confirmed information, we will update our community.
What we do have are heavy hearts, knowing innocent lives were cut short. Regional centers connect families and people with developmental disabilities to services and supports. They are places of connection and community. Any act of violence is a tragedy. But in a place focused on service to people with developmental disabilities, it is even harder to comprehend.
The president of our Board of Directors, Anne Struthers, put it best. “ARCA, the regional centers, and the developmental disabilities community is united in mourning and support. The victims of today’s shooting were connected to us by service to those in need. Our hearts are with all those affected.”
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