Theft of Customized Wheelchair Robs Disabled Girl of Her Lifeline

Eleven-year-old Allison Smith’s wheelchair is more than just a way of getting around. It’s her lifeline.

Until it was stolen from her mother’s car Monday night, the customized wheelchair gave the mentally and physically disabled Woodland Hills girl the freedom to do at least some of the things children her age take for granted.

The purchase of the $5,000 wheelchair was partially covered by Allison’s mother’s health insurance. But Carla Smith has since changed jobs and her current policy does not cover its replacement.

Smith first noticed that the wheelchair was missing Tuesday morning when she was getting ready to take Allison to a special day camp class at Balboa Recreation Center. Allison, who has cerebral palsy and a birth defect called microencephaly, normally attends Lokrantz Elementary School in Reseda but is now on winter break.

“I went out to the car to get her wheelchair and it was gone,” said Smith, 35. “I left it there last night because it was raining so bad that I carried my daughter inside. I usually never leave it in the car. I feel terrible.”

The burglar rifled through the glove box but apparently did not steal anything else, Lt. Bob Warren said.

“The wheelchair was disassembled in six pieces,” Warren said. “I’m not sure they even knew what they were stealing. They probably just thought it looked expensive.”

The wheelchair, which has a pink seat and black trim, is tailored to allow Allison to sit up and would not be worth much to anyone else, Warren said. Allison also cannot speak, and the chair could be equipped with her keyboard that enables her to communicate.

“Unless someone is her exact same height and weight and has the same disabilities, the chair doesn’t really do them any good,” Smith said. “That chair is her life. It took a long time to get it.”

Warren said wheelchair thefts are rare. In October, 4-year-old Amanda Braden had her motorized wheelchair stolen from the front porch of her parents’ Norwalk home. The wheelchair was not recovered, but donations that followed publicity about the theft allowed the family to replace it.

Smith, a single mother who is a word processor, works part time so that her schedule is flexible enough to attend to Allison’s needs. Smith said she needs to get her a new wheelchair by the time school starts in February because Allison is not allowed to ride on a school bus without it.

The girl cannot sit up without help and on Tuesday could only lie on the floor and watch as other children in her day camp class were playing. Occasionally she would lift her head and smile.

“Her wheelchair is the key to everything,” said Doreen Villa, a nurse in the program. “She’s sensitive. But she just can’t do anything without her wheelchair.”

Allison’s younger brother, Kevin, said he hopes that the thief will take pity and leave her wheelchair where police will find it.

“This chair is the best thing in my sister’s life,” said Kevin, a 9-year-old who is not disabled. “I’m mad at the person who took this. Why would someone want to steal her wheelchair? Anyone who has a wheelchair really needs it.”