A neighbor sued a San Jose family whose son has autism, claiming the child’s grunts in the back were a “nuisance.” The family countersued and, this week, a jury ruled in their favor. Ezequiel, known as Zeke, is a 14-year-old teenager who suffers from Level 3 autism, a severe form of the dis order that sometimes involves loud grunting. “It requires very high support needs. Usually full care with dressing, bathing, toileting, dangers, safety. It’s a lot,” Zeke’s mom Serena Arvayo said. Zeke and his mom lived with her dad in a home in San Jose until a neighbor filed a lawsuit, claiming her property value was dropping because of Zeke, and that she was suffering emotional distress, labeling the child a “nuisance”. That’s a word the family says traumatized them. “It was hurtful. You use that for an animal, or a car alarm that won’t shut off. But not an autistic individual,” Arvayo said. “Completely outrageous. I mean, how can a family intentionally inflict emotional distress on a neighbor because the child was innocently playing in the back yard and making noise? Sounds of joy,” Elizabeth Hansen with Behar Gibbs Savage Paulson, LLP said. Arvayo says it took away Zeke’s humanity. They moved out of her dad’s rental home, so as not to cause more problems, but the neighbor’s lawsuit remained in place. Arvayo then countersued and both suits went to trial. “It’s a challenge. We can’t just live anywhere. An apartment, we won’t live in. Sharing walls is very difficult because we’re always very careful and mindful of other people, but I always now go next door and say ‘Hey, this is my son. If you have any worries, please come talk to me’,” Arvayo said. This week, the Arvayo family won the countersuit. The same jury awarded them $8 million. Arvayo says it gave her son his humanity back. “My son was represented with dignity. And that was the most important thing for him, to have the dignity he deserves,” Arvayo said. “I think the jury in this case was sending a message. That in a civilized society, we need to have empathy and compassion, and civility at its most basic level,” Arvayo’s lawyer Missy Cornejo said. “This delivers a message to people think they can get away with bad behavior. You better be careful because you might pay the consequences,” Arvayo’s lawyer Ron Rossi said. Repeated messages to the plaintiff’s lawyer have not been returned. The Arvayo family now is relieved, hoping Zeke has given other children on the spectrum a voice. ...read more read less