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Autistic Boy's Mom Says Today Wasn't His 1st Disappearance

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By MIKE WELLS | The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 6, 2007

Updated: 09/06/2007 10:41 am

Photo Gallery | Midday Video Report: Boy Returned Home | Video: Boy's Mother Talks To Media

RUGENE MOORE / News Channel 8

TAMPA - Cory Daves, the 14-year-old autistic child found wandering north Tampa's streets in a pair of boxer shorts early today, is safe and "happy as a clam," his mother said.

Jo Ann Daves smiled in relief as she talked to reporters outside the group home her son wandered away from sometime during the night.

"I love my son tremendously, and I would not leave him here unless I felt like it was safe," she said. "And I do feel like it is a very safe place here. These people love my son."

Cory was found wandering a busy street in the middle of the night with a bag of Chex Mix in his hands. Hillsborough County Deputy Watts Sanderson spotted him near Fowler Avenue and 22nd Street at 2:30 a.m. and put him in a patrol car.

The child was unable to communicate his name or where he lived, so deputies and Tampa police went door-to-door in search of his family.

After more than four hours, they stopped at 2307 Colby Lane, a group home owned by Jamaal and Nicolai Barnett, according to county records. Police think he walked more than a half mile.

Cory is autistic and has lived in the group home since March, his mother said.

According to police, no similar complaints or incidents have been reported concerning the home.

Daves said her son's disappearance was a "very horrible mistake," but she said she supports the group home's owners.

"I do feel he is in a very, very safe environment here," she said while watching her son in her SUV's back seat.

This wasn't his first disappearing act, she said.

"Cory isn't a sleeper," Daves said. "Never has been."

There's little anyone can do to secure him if he's determined to go outside, she said.

"There are rules that they have to follow to secure the house," she said. "He's tried to get out of a window before, not here, and they were not able to put locks on the windows because that was not in the fire safety codes. So, sometimes it's a Catch-22."

She was grateful for the help everyone gave to find her son but said she's frustrated there is no system in place to help lost people.

"Our pets have those microchips, but we have children and adults with disabilities who can't communicate," Daves said. "We need to come up with something as a community so that the public is aware and this won't frighten them and there is a system where we can get them back to where they need to be."

Stay with TBO.com for developments on this story.

News Channel 8 reporter Chip Osowski contributed to this report. Reporter Mike Wells can be reached at (813) 259-7839 or mwells@tampatrib.com.

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