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Spotlight February 2006
Spotlight on Tobie Tyler
In 1982, Tobie was working in Brookfield as a police officer. One night, he sustained a gunshot to the head while on duty, changing his life and shaping his character as an advocate on behalf of people with disabilities. Tobie says that the most important thing about advocacy is to speak face to face with elected officials and to let them know how important our issues are. He says that there are not a lot of elected officials with disabilities so it is even more important for people with disabilities to go public with their issues. He says "If you want to change attitudes, a lot of people need to work together to fight back-make it a public issue. People with disabilities need to be seen." Tobie is a strong voice on the IndependenceFirst Board of Directors.
Tobie Tyler was born in 1944 in the small town of Wamego, Kansas. In 1965, he moved to Wisconsin and in order to pursue his dream of joining a police force, he began his schooling at this time. He received his bachelor's degree at Milton University and his master's degree in Police Science at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. At the young age of 21, Tobie was hired as a police officer for the Brookfield Police Department.
Years later, in 1982, Tobie was on duty one night, sitting in his car in a parking lot. He witnessed what looked like a drug transaction occurring between two cars. As he walked toward the cars, one man sped away in his car. Tobie got in his car and embarked on what became a 100mph high-speed-chase! Finally, the car he was chasing crashed into a fire hydrant. The man got out and shot Tobie in the head with a 357 Magnum. As it turned out, this man turned out to be an escaped convict who had been arrested for murder.
The gunshot left Tobie alive, but his life was changed forever. He has undergone extensive speech and psychological therapy and is still working on his recovery to this day. He's also helping other people with disabilities fight for their rights and helping to change the laws to better protect people with disabilities.
Tobie formed the S.E. Wisconsin chapter of ADAPT, a group that describes itself as "fighting so people with disabilities can live in the community with real supports instead of being locked away in nursing homes and other institutions." He also volunteers for IndependenceFirst and is currently serving as a Board Member. He has worked in several civil rights cases on behalf of people with disabilities including a fight to make Milwaukee Greyhound busses accessible (which landed him an article in the Milwaukee Journal), and a suit against the city of Manhattan, Kansas which went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court! Today that city is the only 100% accessible city in the U.S., thanks to Tobie's advocacy. Tobie continues to be a strong advocate in Metro Milwaukee for disability rights and accessibility.
Years later, in 1982, Tobie was on duty one night, sitting in his car in a parking lot. He witnessed what looked like a drug transaction occurring between two cars. As he walked toward the cars, one man sped away in his car. Tobie got in his car and embarked on what became a 100mph high-speed-chase! Finally, the car he was chasing crashed into a fire hydrant. The man got out and shot Tobie in the head with a 357 Magnum. As it turned out, this man turned out to be an escaped convict who had been arrested for murder.
The gunshot left Tobie alive, but his life was changed forever. He has undergone extensive speech and psychological therapy and is still working on his recovery to this day. He's also helping other people with disabilities fight for their rights and helping to change the laws to better protect people with disabilities.
Tobie formed the S.E. Wisconsin chapter of ADAPT, a group that describes itself as "fighting so people with disabilities can live in the community with real supports instead of being locked away in nursing homes and other institutions." He also volunteers for IndependenceFirst and is currently serving as a Board Member. He has worked in several civil rights cases on behalf of people with disabilities including a fight to make Milwaukee Greyhound busses accessible (which landed him an article in the Milwaukee Journal), and a suit against the city of Manhattan, Kansas which went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court! Today that city is the only 100% accessible city in the U.S., thanks to Tobie's advocacy. Tobie continues to be a strong advocate in Metro Milwaukee for disability rights and accessibility.