Law Enforcement Training for Autism-Related Encounters
Autism provides law enforcement officers a number of unique challenges. The rise in the number of children and adults with autism has police and sheriff departments throughout the country developing new programs to respond to the public health crisis.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports one in 110 children are diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, which is a pervasive developmental disorder effecting a person's ability to communicate or respond typically in any given situation.
Police officers may feel threatened in situations with an autistic person without the ability to speak or who has become agitated by sirens and flashing lights. Likewise, the officer might think a person with Asperger's Syndrome is being disrespectful when he actually waives his right hand as the officer is reading the Miranda Rights. Furthermore, a number of autistic children and adults regularly escape from their homes and caregivers and end up in dangerous situations.
Last month the El Dorado Sheriff department in California introduced a registry program for its 158 autistic residents. The sheriff’s department provides a website for parents and caregivers to provide information about their loved ones. Names, addresses, physical descriptions and any other relevant information become available for the deputies, who may encounter these children or adults with disabilities. According to the department’s training officer, this information aids law enforcement upon encounters individuals who are non-verbal or responding atypically as a result of their disability.
Calvert County, Maryland Sheriff’s department is currently working with the local school board to hold a mock traffic stop and accident scene for teens and young adults with autism. The cooperative effort is to educate law enforcement, local rescue workers, parents and those with disabilities about what happens during a routine traffic stop or accident. The organizers of the event hope walking teenagers through a controlled environment will help them know what they can expect and not become terrified during an actual event. Police officers and rescue workers will also have an opportunity to see how these young adults might respond to the noises and flashing lights of sirens or being strapped down to a backboard after an accident.
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