From courtroom advocacy to community action, the Alpha Law Group attorney carries forward a family mission two decades in the making—and this weekend, Sarasota comes together for the cause.
SARASOTA, Fla. — On a warm Saturday morning, thousands of runners, walkers, and families will gather at Nathan Benderson Park for the Second Annual Alpha Law Group Autism 5K—a free, sensory-friendly event designed not just to raise money, but to send a message: the autism community is not invisible, and the people fighting for them are not going away.
Behind the event stands Alex J. Kompothecras, the 28-year-old Managing Attorney of Alpha Law Group, a personal injury firm based in Sarasota County. But to understand what drives Alex to organize this race, to testify before prosecutors, to personally bail strangers out of jail—you have to understand the family that shaped him.
His father, Dr. Gary Kompothecras, is a chiropractor, entrepreneur, and founder of the nationally recognized 1-800-ASK-GARY medical and legal referral service. His mother, Beth, is a businesswoman, event planner, and the quiet backbone of a family of eight. Together, Gary and Beth raised six children in their Siesta Key home. Two of them—Bronson and Sarah Alice—are severely affected by autism spectrum disorder.
For nearly two decades, the Kompothecras family has channeled their private heartbreak into a very public mission: to ensure that no family navigating autism has to fight alone.
“Dr. Gary and Beth Kompothecras, parents of six and lifelong advocates for autism awareness and justice.”
A Father Who Refused to Be Silent
Dr. Gary Kompothecras—known to most simply as “Dr. Gary”—did not set out to become one of Florida’s most vocal autism advocates. He built a career in chiropractic medicine and then revolutionized accident victim referral services with 1-800-ASK-GARY, a business that now operates across multiple states and employs hundreds. He and Beth built a life in Sarasota, raised their children, and contributed to their community.
Then autism entered the Kompothecras household.
When Bronson and Sarah Alice were diagnosed, something shifted permanently in Dr. Gary. He threw himself into research on the causes and contributing factors of autism spectrum disorder. He became a member of the Florida Governor’s Task Force on Autism Spectrum Disorders. He traveled to Tallahassee, lobbied legislators, and pushed for bills that would mandate stricter standards for vaccine ingredients in Florida. He financed research, supported documentary filmmakers, and donated to organizations working on the front lines of the autism crisis.
In January 2026, Governor DeSantis appointed Dr. Gary to the Florida Board of Chiropractic Medicine—a recognition of his decades of service to the medical community. Just weeks later, in February 2026, he drove six hours from Sarasota to Tallahassee to testify before a Senate committee considering legislation that would expand parental vaccine choice, telling the assembled senators that he first came to the Capitol nineteen years ago trying to address vaccine safety—and that the urgency has only grown since.
As recently as September 2025, Dr. Gary formalized his advocacy by launching the Autism Justice Foundation, a Florida-based 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing autism prevention, supporting affected families, and pushing for accountability in public health policy. The Foundation has assembled a high-caliber advisory team and works closely with organizations like Children’s Health Defense, led by Mary Holland, to coordinate national reform efforts.
For years, I’ve witnessed the irreversible damage inflicted on our nation’s children, My son and I founded the Autism Justice Foundation because families deserve a voice and a path to justice.
— Dr. Gary has said.
The Son Who Picked Up the Torch
Alex Kompothecras grew up watching his father wage this battle. He saw the sleepless nights, the phone calls to legislators, the trips to conferences and hearings. He saw his mother manage a household where two of his siblings required round-the-clock care and attention. And he saw Bronson and Sarah Alice themselves—not as statistics, but as his brother and sister.
Watching what my parents went through—what Bronson and Sarah Alice go through every day—that’s what drives everything I do in this space, I didn’t choose this cause. It chose me.
— Alex has said.
Alex pursued law, graduating and passing the bar to practice in Florida’s 12th Judicial Circuit. He founded Alpha Law Group in Sarasota, building a personal injury practice known for its client-first philosophy. But from the beginning, autism advocacy was woven into Alpha Law’s DNA. The firm’s website prominently features its “Justice for Autism” initiative, and the team actively works to connect families with resources related to the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program and related legal avenues.
Then, in September 2024, a case landed on Alex’s radar that would crystallize everything he stood for.
When Justice Failed: The Francisco Diaz-Burgos Case
Francisco Diaz-Burgos is a 30-year-old man with autism who lives in the Sarasota-Manatee area. On September 10, 2024, Francisco was riding in his father’s car when Holmes Beach police pulled them over after a license plate recognition system flagged the vehicle. The officer asked Francisco to interpret for his father, Orlando Diaz, who did not speak English fluently. When the officer moved to arrest Orlando for driving without a valid license, Francisco—confused and protective—reached for his father’s arm.
What followed was captured on body camera footage: Francisco, a man on the autism spectrum who was struggling to process a rapidly escalating situation, was tased and forcibly restrained. He was charged with two counts of battery on a law enforcement officer, two counts of resisting arrest with violence, and one count of resisting without violence. He was booked into the Manatee County Jail’s general population, where he remained for three weeks.
When Alex Kompothecras learned what had happened, he didn’t just express concern. He acted. He personally paid Francisco’s bail to secure his release. He then met Francisco in person at Nathan Benderson Park, where the extent of the damage became painfully clear.
The amount of PTSD that Mr. Diaz is struggling with is heartbreaking, He repeatedly asked me, ‘Am I going to prison?’ and ‘Am I going to get deported?’ over and over again.
— Alex wrote in a letter to the State Attorney’s office.
Francisco is a legal U.S. resident who holds federal DACA status. He had done nothing wrong. He had simply tried to protect his father in a moment of fear.
Working alongside Francisco’s defense attorney, CJ Czaia, Alex met with State Attorney Ed Brodsky and the assigned prosecutor. Together, they helped the office understand the realities of autism spectrum disorder and how it had shaped Francisco’s response that night. In late December 2024, Francisco’s case was administratively dismissed following his completion of a pretrial intervention program.
They originally wanted more severe penalties, but when we discussed the issue of autism and somebody being on the spectrum, they were willing to work with us.
— Czaia told the Sarasota Herald-Tribune,
From One Case to Systemic Change
For Alex, Francisco’s ordeal was not an isolated incident. It was a symptom of a much larger failure—a system that does not adequately train law enforcement, judges, or judicial staff to recognize and accommodate individuals with autism.
The statistics bear this out. People with developmental disabilities are approximately seven times more likely to come into contact with police than the general population. Research suggests that between 8% and 20% of people with autism or their caregivers have interacted with law enforcement, with roughly 5% of those interactions resulting in arrest. Yet in Florida, autism-specific training for officers remains largely optional. A 2017 statute created two online training modules that could count toward accreditation hours, but in-person training—the kind that allows officers to actually interact with individuals on the spectrum—has never been mandated.
A 2023 bill that would have required four hours of in-person ASD instruction for law enforcement recruits and active officers died in committee in 2024. The Autism Society of Florida, led by President Stacey Hoaglund, continues to advocate for its resurrection.
Those one in 36 children are going to grow to be adults, and we’re not going to be ready for it,
— Hoaglund has warned.
Alex took the advocacy further. Following the Diaz-Burgos resolution, State Attorney Brodsky agreed to work with Alex on developing a training program for prosecutors, public defenders, and the broader legal community in the 12th Judicial Circuit.
I thought it was a great idea to try to come together and see if we could do a training for the legal community,
— Brodsky told the Herald-Tribune.
Alex is now consulting with therapists who have worked with his own siblings to design a program that goes beyond slide decks and webinars. His vision is hands-on: officers and legal professionals spending time with schools’ special needs departments and local organizations that work directly with people on the spectrum.
The best way to actually educate these police officers is to have them interact with young adults and children with autism, I’m going to do everything I can to make a change.
— Alex has said.
Meanwhile, in the 2026 Florida legislative session, Senate Bill 418 is advancing—a measure that would improve law enforcement protocols for interactions with individuals on the autism spectrum, including the development of ASD-specific identification tools. The momentum that Alex and advocates like the Autism Society of Florida have built is translating into policy.
This Saturday: Sarasota Comes Together
All of this—the family history, the courtroom fights, the legislative work—converges this weekend at the Second Annual Alpha Law Group Autism 5K at Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota.
The event is entirely free for families to attend. One hundred percent of proceeds raised go directly to two organizations: The Haven, a Sarasota-based nonprofit providing support for individuals with disabilities, and the Autism Society of Florida, which advocates statewide for policy reforms and family resources.
But the 5K is about more than fundraising. Alex and his co-organizer, fellow Alpha Law attorney Chase Engelbrecht, have designed the event to be what so many community gatherings are not: genuinely accessible.
The environment is sensory-friendly, with trained volunteers on hand to ensure comfort for attendees on the spectrum. There are inflatable slides and games for children, pony rides and animals, free food and cotton candy, and cold drinks including beer for the adults. Runners and walkers of all abilities are welcome on the 5K course.
Access isn’t just about ramps and signage, It’s about designing experiences where every family feels safe, comfortable, and included.
— Alex said in a recent press release.
For many families navigating autism, attending a public event of any kind can feel overwhelming or impossible. This one was built specifically with them in mind.
Families navigating autism often face real financial and logistical hurdles,
— added Chase Engelbrecht. The 5K removes those barriers—no entry fees, no complicated logistics, just a day where families can show up and belong.
“The Alpha Law Group Autism 5K at Nathan Benderson Park—free, family-friendly, and built for inclusion.”
A Family United Across Generations
What makes the Kompothecras story remarkable is not any single act of advocacy. It is the consistency—the relentless, year-after-year commitment across an entire family.
Dr. Gary has been making that drive to Tallahassee for nineteen years. Beth has held the family together through every challenge that comes with raising children affected by severe autism. Alex, the eldest son, watched it all unfold and chose to carry the mission into the next generation—not as a passive inheritor of a cause, but as an active leader building new institutions, creating new events, and forging new relationships with law enforcement and the legal community.
The broader context makes their work more urgent than ever. The CDC now reports that one in 36 children in the United States is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. In May 2025, Governor DeSantis signed Senate Bill 112, a bipartisan measure expanding early intervention services, creating autism-specific charter school grants, summer programs, and a free autism micro-credential for educators. It was the first bill to pass the Florida Senate that session—a signal of how seriously the state’s leadership is taking the issue.
At the federal level, the conversation is equally urgent. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has called the autism epidemic one of the defining public health challenges of our time. The Kompothecras family’s Autism Justice Foundation works in alignment with organizations like Children’s Health Defense to push for transparency, accountability, and meaningful reform in vaccine safety policy.
This is not abstract politics for the Kompothecras family. Every policy conversation, every hearing in Tallahassee, every training session with prosecutors comes back to the same place: Bronson and Sarah Alice. Two children who transformed an entire family’s purpose.
Heroes Don’t Always Wear Capes
Alex Kompothecras doesn’t use that word about himself. Neither does his father. They would both tell you they’re just doing what needed to be done.
But when a young man with autism sat in a jail cell for three weeks because the system didn’t know how to handle him, Alex Kompothecras wrote a check and drove to the courthouse. When officers needed training, he volunteered to build the program. When the State Attorney needed education, he sat at the table and made it happen. And when families in Sarasota needed a place where they could just show up and be a family, he built a 5K.
His father cleared the path. His mother held the family together. His siblings inspired the mission. And now Alex is running with it—literally and figuratively—this Saturday at Nathan Benderson Park.
I’d like to see our community come together on this,
— Alex has said. That’s exactly what’s happening.
“Father and son, united in a cause bigger than any courtroom.”]
EVENT DETAILS
2nd Annual Alpha Law Group Autism 5K
Nathan Benderson Park | Sarasota, Florida
Saturday, March 2026 | FREE Admission
100% of proceeds benefit The Haven (Sarasota) and Autism Society of Florida
5K for runners and walkers of all abilities • Inflatable slides and games • Pony rides and animals • Free food, drinks, and cotton candy • Beer for adults • Sensory-friendly environment with trained volunteers
Register: runsignup.com/Race/FL/Sarasota/AlphaLawGroupAutism5K
Learn more: alphainjurylaw.com