Should the police be trained to deal with autism?
As many of you may be aware a few weeks ago a twenty-something young man was shot and killed by police. Now the case is for many reasons very controversial (you can read more here.) So in some ways it is not a representative example of the issues surrounding autism and policing. But it is an example.
How one solution being discussed is to place autism as a key aspect of their training of our police forces. Articles like this outline some good ways police and other law enforcement professionals can be trained.
So what do you think? Firstly it would be great if you could share your thoughts using the poll below.
It would be great if you could share your views in more detail in the comments section below. If you are a police officer we would be very keen to hear your thoughts.
Many thanks in advance.
| IAG interactionadvisorygroup.com |
In my opinion there is much more to training Law Enforcement than just showing differences/challenges an individual with ASD may face or have. There must be acute training on several areas of ASD. Communication, Recognition, Sensory Processing, Wandering, Search/Rescue, Arrest/Custody and most importantly DE-ESCALTION. Too often times officers are quick to go hands on with an individual when they do not have to and it puts both officer and citizen in an unsafe position. Officers are trained to get a situation under control and keep themselves and those around them safe. I fully understand it, Ive been there many times. But with individuals with ASD or other DD, it is NOT the best option to go hands on and often times everything can be kept under control with de-esclation techniques. If an officer even thinks a person is on the spectrum they MUST starting taking a different approach on how to interact with that individual, child or adult.
For a little background on me: http://www.interactionadvisorygroup.com/dustin-chandler/ I hope everyone is doing well across the pond as they say. Dustin |
| fartuun | Me either I live that fear day by night. |
| fartuun | I’m in Canada and few months ago there was a young boy around his late 20 accidentally killed by the police because misunderstood of his actions officer thought he is that the boy was ignoring for the officers order, as the result was being shot a d killed. I’m not blaming the police officers they doing there job but they must get trained to understand how innocent people who living spectrum disorder life and badly need to support when they are panicked by the officers voices which many of them have no ideal what being asked. For example, police officers might say put your hands up, but autism person might start misunderstood and meltdown instead of follow the rules. I pray for our poor children and I hope officers get more knowledge of how people with spectrum disorder acts than those real criminals. I live with fear, I often ask myself what if my son go out at night and police officers stop him and he doesn’t understand what happens or why the police stop him. It will be life saving, if the police in my location get more training to identify autistic peoples behaviors. |
| DarkDragoness | My local police force is trained in ASD. They are really good with me. They have been working with a local autism charity to make sure they get it right |
| LisaBurridge | I was one of the (autistic) trainers for Thames Valley Police. We covered some basic neurological differences that autistic people share, to give an understanding of the challenges we face, and I hope we managed to further understanding by sharing our own experiences. Do contact me if I can help. |
| CaryCanavan | After a series of unfortunate encounters with our local police force and a bit of lobbying, 5 of us (parents) presented our case for training in Asperger Syndrome (because AS is largely hidden) to our Chief Superintendent and a couple of colleagues. We highlighted the difficulties and how they might make reasonable adjustments to support both the police and the autistic community. Since then we have an Autism Alert Card, individual police have engaged with us re a variety of issues; our inclusion team have invited people with AS to consultation re Stop and Search and are looking at differentiating information to support autistics when they are taken into custody. In September we were invited to give a talk to the Youth Offending Teams from 3 forces in the South West. A friend and I presented the talk with our children both teenagers. What was different about what we did, was that the presentation was given by people with Asperger Syndrome and had experiences with the police. We were able to talk about the impact of autism as a neuro-developmental condition, which impacts not only on processing, social communication, imagination and interaction but also sensory issues and alert to physical aspects, such as hyper-mobility, which can have a serious outcomes if restraint is employed. This was related to real life experiences, which the other parent and our children talked about to explain the condition. My advice would be for police forces to reach out to their local autism community and involve them in any training and consultation when developing/adapting procedures – after all we live with the condition every day. There is also some excellent research undertaken by Maras, Beardon and this undertaken by Southampton University:http://www.widgit.com/sectors/health-emergency-justice/hampshire-constabulary-research/index.htm?_route_=custodysheets |
| patienttalk patienttalk.org |
KierenBaker Many thanks for sharing – what was included in the training? |
| KierenBaker | As a serving Officer and someone who has an autistic brother I can say in my force we do have training regarding ASDs and in our area there is a thing started by Thames Valley Police called an autism awareness card. I think awareness is on the up but that said having been subject of more than one near death assault in that moment as I was fighting to stay alive, was I considering whether or not the suspect has autism no I wasnt. Sadly sometimes a threat is a threat and that danger needs to be dealt with and decisions are made in a matter of milliseconds so Id never second guess another Officers actions. I just hope that with awareness things can be prevented from escalating to that point because sadly when its at the point a persons behaviour becomes an immediate danger to others then the reason why becomes largely irrevelant. To summarise though whilst my force have specific training im not aware of any national training for all services. |
| Shannon Buterin | It would be beyond amazing to see that kind of training. Especially if that individual is having a meltdown; how to use active listening skills, how to remain calm, how to assess a situation …are they hurting any one, are they making threats, are the threats believable, how to keep the public safe. There are so many ways to do this, and there are so few who are trained. I happen to work in this field and I have a child that is at the higher end of the spectrum. So I do get it. Not all tactics work, but the biggest and easiest way to deal with a person who is autistic; and mind you this in my world; hands down; it would have to be active listening. |
| PaulFosterReed | I have HF Autism and I was recently brutally assaulted by the police after a severe meltdown. They had no idea what to do in fact they couldn’t have done it worse if they tried. It is essential that they are trained so situations like this can be avoided. |
| PhyllisSpence | I cannot imagine my son getting shot by policeman because his outburst is mistakenly interpreted as a threat. |
| Kate P | Yes but it’s also not fair, with all the cut backs, that they should have to look after people with Autism. It’s not fair on the Police nor people with Autism but this is the reality at the moment. They just don’t have the right resources. Speaking from experience, the Police have been very empathetic with my son and our situation but I don’t think it’s their job. The help needs to come sooner, before it gets to the stage where the Police become involved |
| fartuun | This is a heartbreaking many people need to be teach how to deal with autism spectrum disorder person or at least understand what is like to have a child with autism spectrum disorder.i have a child with autism spectrum disorder and i took him to the library and they kicked us out because he wouldn’t stop talking and Keep exciting whenever he scored a game he doesn’t understand we are in a public place and we shouldn’t be distributed others. this is so sad and it worries me a lot more than I already have. U0001f622 |
| npaa_uk | Interesting comments – thanks for raising this important topic. The National Police Autism Association promotes autism training for frontline officers – check out our website http://www.npaa.org.uk and Twitter feed npaa_uk |
| GillianStar | Must be someone we need more of. |
| patienttalk patienttalk.org |
NicolaSmithCarlile Thanks |
| patienttalk patienttalk.org |
NicolaSmithCarlile Not trying to be difficult but what do you mean the local communist? |
| NicolaSmithCarlile | That’s s brilliant help. I do know when talking to other officers that have worked in other areas that they have adopted a good way to communicate with the local communist regarding autism. One area even worm small badges that looked like teddy bears so the public were aware they had done autism training in a discreet way. It was awesome!! |
| NicolaSmithCarlile | I couldn’t agree more and in the awareness training I have been providing to Westminster met police I have also incorporated theses other conditions. They do already receive training for some of the conditions mentioned. Just to put your mind at rest slightly but as with anything it takes time to filter down and also money, I gave my service for free as there is no budget for what they call diverse training! |
| stephenie burke | Hi MA Autism Sheffield Hallam student here. Our lecturer recently showed us this link on guidelines for the police when communicating with people with Autism. We thought that it was great and should be on the wall in every police station in the uk! https://www.herts.police.uk/pdf/victims_and_witnesses_of_crime_autism_guide_for_criminal_justice_professionals.pdf |
| HanneeCheung | Police MUST have receive the training because they may have to make life or death decisions over someone that isn’t acting ‘normally’. There are lessons from America that people with autism have been killed by police that didn’t have the training. |
| ICE4Autism | It is important that police and emergency response personnel be trained to recognize the signs of autism,but it is equally important that individuals on the spectrum and their loved ones do their part to help first responders by providing them with the specific information that will help them treat the person properly. Successfully conveying unique needs and information can make a huge difference in how emergency personnel can and will respond. Check out ICE4Autism – the ONLY autism-specific in case of emergency mobile app — so you and your loved ones can be prepared to convey your unique needs in an emergency! Learn more about it:http://www.ICE4Autism.com on the App Store: https://itunes.apple.com/app/ice4autism/id969601780?mt=8 PatientTalk: https://patienttalk.org/ice4autism-the-only-autism-specific-in-case-of-emergency-ice-mobile-app-a-guest-post-from-wanda-refaely/ |
| patienttalk patienttalk.org |
autism STEP You might be interested in Dustin’s site |
| patienttalk patienttalk.org |
IAG You can check out Dustin’s web page here http://www.interactionadvisorygroup.com/ |
| IAG interactionadvisorygroup.com |
Autism training for police officers is absolutely needed. Having been a police officer for a decade in the US I know the situations officers find themselves in and what the thought process is in dealing with those situations. Also being a father of a child with ASD and other DD, I also know now how those interactions should take place. Scene management is critical when dealing with an individual with Autism or I/DD. It’s critical for officer AND citizens safety and to ensure the person with ASD is treated fairly. The level of understanding must be raised for officers, no matter where you are, to allow them a thought process that is a little different that what is trained in academies. This is not to say an officer should lose their “edge” while working the street, but there should be something something to tickle their brain in dealing with a person with Autism. If we can raise the level of understanding I firmly believe we will also be raising the level of Acceptance in our societies. People with Autism and I/DD are no different then you or me, we all have challenges though some have to deal with those challenges a little different.
Every training class I have conducted I usually have one or two officers come up to me during breaks and thank me for “getting the word out” because they know it’s needed. They also respect the fact I have worn a badge and fully understand their perspective and have Empathy for both sides, parents and officers. Dustin |
| IAG interactionadvisorygroup.com |
Betsy85 I agree that there should be more training. We are expecting our officers to handle situations they simply aren’t ready to handle. Lack of knowledge can be corrected via training. We must also recognize and share with the LEOs the resources that are available to them when dealing with Mental Health. The best options are not always psych ward or jail. Again, raising the level of understanding goes a long way. If we lack knowledge about something we often times become fearful of it. |
| Betsy85 | I think this is a great idea however it falls short. What about additional mental health disorders such as schizophrenia, ODD, OCD, ADHD, and even a combination of many others. I work with special needs and know how quickly things can go from great to all out end of the world! Public sector workers that would come into contact with people with alternate abilities, different ways of thinking in a rushed, high stress, emergency situations should be well trained to confidently handle any situation. |
| RichardClements | Hi we need the help of the asd community please read the following and click the link as we’d like to invite you to our boys group to help us change things there is a petition there we need signing and would really appreciate your help http://autism-memorial.livejournal.com/50669.html https://www.facebook.com/groups/riplittleharry/ |
In my opinion there is much more to training Law Enforcement than just showing differences/challenges an individual with ASD may face or have. There must be acute training on several areas of ASD. Communication, Recognition, Sensory Processing, Wandering, Search/Rescue, Arrest/Custody and most importantly DE-ESCALTION. Too often times officers are quick to go hands on with an individual when they do not have to and it puts both officer and citizen in an unsafe position. Officers are trained to get a situation under control and keep themselves and those around them safe. I fully understand it, Ive been there many times. But with individuals with ASD or other DD, it is NOT the best option to go hands on and often times everything can be kept under control with de-esclation techniques. If an officer even thinks a person is on the spectrum they MUST starting taking a different approach on how to interact with that individual, child or adult.
For a little background on me: http://www.interactionadvisorygroup.com/dustin-chandler/
And for information about my companies new training solution please read: http://www.interactionadvisorygroup.com/category/press-releases/
I hope everyone is doing well across the pond as they say.
Dustin
United States
Me either I live that fear day by night.
I’m in Canada and few months ago there was a young boy around his late 20 accidentally killed by the police because misunderstood of his actions officer thought he is that the boy was ignoring for the officers order, as the result was being shot a d killed. I’m not blaming the police officers they doing there job but they must get trained to understand how innocent people who living spectrum disorder life and badly need to support when they are panicked by the officers voices which many of them have no ideal what being asked. For example, police officers might say put your hands up, but autism person might start misunderstood and meltdown instead of follow the rules. I pray for our poor children and I hope officers get more knowledge of how people with spectrum disorder acts than those real criminals. I live with fear, I often ask myself what if my son go out at night and police officers stop him and he doesn’t understand what happens or why the police stop him. It will be life saving, if the police in my location get more training to identify autistic peoples behaviors.
My local police force is trained in ASD. They are really good with me. They have been working with a local autism charity to make sure they get it right
I was one of the (autistic) trainers for Thames Valley Police. We covered some basic neurological differences that autistic people share, to give an understanding of the challenges we face, and I hope we managed to further understanding by sharing our own experiences. Do contact me if I can help.
After a series of unfortunate encounters with our local police force and a bit of lobbying, 5 of us (parents) presented our case for training in Asperger Syndrome (because AS is largely hidden) to our Chief Superintendent and a couple of colleagues. We highlighted the difficulties and how they might make reasonable adjustments to support both the police and the autistic community.
Since then we have an Autism Alert Card, individual police have engaged with us re a variety of issues; our inclusion team have invited people with AS to consultation re Stop and Search and are looking at differentiating information to support autistics when they are taken into custody.
In September we were invited to give a talk to the Youth Offending Teams from 3 forces in the South West. A friend and I presented the talk with our children both teenagers. What was different about what we did, was that the presentation was given by people with Asperger Syndrome and had experiences with the police. We were able to talk about the impact of autism as a neuro-developmental condition, which impacts not only on processing, social communication, imagination and interaction but also sensory issues and alert to physical aspects, such as hyper-mobility, which can have a serious outcomes if restraint is employed. This was related to real life experiences, which the other parent and our children talked about to explain the condition.
My advice would be for police forces to reach out to their local autism community and involve them in any training and consultation when developing/adapting procedures – after all we live with the condition every day.
There is also some excellent research undertaken by Maras, Beardon and this undertaken by Southampton University:
http://www.widgit.com/sectors/health-emergency-justice/hampshire-constabulary-research/index.htm?_route_=custodysheets
KierenBaker Many thanks for sharing – what was included in the training?
As a serving Officer and someone who has an autistic brother I can say in my force we do have training regarding ASDs and in our area there is a thing started by Thames Valley Police called an autism awareness card. I think awareness is on the up but that said having been subject of more than one near death assault in that moment as I was fighting to stay alive, was I considering whether or not the suspect has autism no I wasnt. Sadly sometimes a threat is a threat and that danger needs to be dealt with and decisions are made in a matter of milliseconds so Id never second guess another Officers actions. I just hope that with awareness things can be prevented from escalating to that point because sadly when its at the point a persons behaviour becomes an immediate danger to others then the reason why becomes largely irrevelant. To summarise though whilst my force have specific training im not aware of any national training for all services.
It would be beyond amazing to see that kind of training. Especially if that individual is having a meltdown; how to use active listening skills, how to remain calm, how to assess a situation …are they hurting any one, are they making threats, are the threats believable, how to keep the public safe. There are so many ways to do this, and there are so few who are trained. I happen to work in this field and I have a child that is at the higher end of the spectrum. So I do get it. Not all tactics work, but the biggest and easiest way to deal with a person who is autistic; and mind you this in my world; hands down; it would have to be active listening.
I have HF Autism and I was recently brutally assaulted by the police after a severe meltdown. They had no idea what to do in fact they couldn’t have done it worse if they tried. It is essential that they are trained so situations like this can be avoided.
I cannot imagine my son getting shot by policeman because his outburst is mistakenly interpreted as a threat.
Yes but it’s also not fair, with all the cut backs, that they should have to look after people with Autism. It’s not fair on the Police nor people with Autism but this is the reality at the moment. They just don’t have the right resources. Speaking from experience, the Police have been very empathetic with my son and our situation but I don’t think it’s their job. The help needs to come sooner, before it gets to the stage where the Police become involved
This is a heartbreaking many people need to be teach how to deal with autism spectrum disorder person or at least understand what is like to have a child with autism spectrum disorder.i have a child with autism spectrum disorder and i took him to the library and they kicked us out because he wouldn’t stop talking and Keep exciting whenever he scored a game he doesn’t understand we are in a public place and we shouldn’t be distributed others. this is so sad and it worries me a lot more than I already have. U0001f622
Interesting comments – thanks for raising this important topic. The National Police Autism Association promotes autism training for frontline officers – check out our website http://www.npaa.org.uk and Twitter feed npaa_uk
Must be someone we need more of.
NicolaSmithCarlile Thanks
NicolaSmithCarlile Not trying to be difficult but what do you mean the local communist?
That’s s brilliant help. I do know when talking to other officers that have worked in other areas that they have adopted a good way to communicate with the local communist regarding autism. One area even worm small badges that looked like teddy bears so the public were aware they had done autism training in a discreet way. It was awesome!!
I couldn’t agree more and in the awareness training I have been providing to Westminster met police I have also incorporated theses other conditions. They do already receive training for some of the conditions mentioned. Just to put your mind at rest slightly but as with anything it takes time to filter down and also money, I gave my service for free as there is no budget for what they call diverse training!
Hi sorry for late reply, I am currently getting website in place as I’m being asked more and more to provide this training. But if you need me in the mean time please do not hesitate to contact me via Facebook or email. Thanks hope this is helpful.
stephenie burke Great stuff Stephenie – thanks for posting
Hi MA Autism Sheffield Hallam student here. Our lecturer recently showed us this link on guidelines for the police when communicating with people with Autism. We thought that it was great and should be on the wall in every police station in the uk! https://www.herts.police.uk/pdf/victims_and_witnesses_of_crime_autism_guide_for_criminal_justice_professionals.pdf
Police MUST have receive the training because they may have to make life or death decisions over someone that isn’t acting ‘normally’. There are lessons from America that people with autism have been killed by police that didn’t have the training.
It is important that police and emergency response personnel be trained to recognize the signs of autism,but it is equally important that individuals on the spectrum and their loved ones do their part to help first responders by providing them with the specific information that will help them treat the person properly. Successfully conveying unique needs and information can make a huge difference in how emergency personnel can and will respond.
Check out ICE4Autism – the ONLY autism-specific in case of emergency mobile app — so you and your loved ones can be prepared to convey your unique needs in an emergency!
Learn more about it:
http://www.ICE4Autism.com
on the App Store: https://itunes.apple.com/app/ice4autism/id969601780?mt=8
PatientTalk: https://patienttalk.org/ice4autism-the-only-autism-specific-in-case-of-emergency-ice-mobile-app-a-guest-post-from-wanda-refaely/
autism STEP You might be interested in Dustin’s site
IAG You can check out Dustin’s web page here http://www.interactionadvisorygroup.com/
Autism training for police officers is absolutely needed. Having been a police officer for a decade in the US I know the situations officers find themselves in and what the thought process is in dealing with those situations. Also being a father of a child with ASD and other DD, I also know now how those interactions should take place. Scene management is critical when dealing with an individual with Autism or I/DD. It’s critical for officer AND citizens safety and to ensure the person with ASD is treated fairly. The level of understanding must be raised for officers, no matter where you are, to allow them a thought process that is a little different that what is trained in academies. This is not to say an officer should lose their “edge” while working the street, but there should be something something to tickle their brain in dealing with a person with Autism. If we can raise the level of understanding I firmly believe we will also be raising the level of Acceptance in our societies. People with Autism and I/DD are no different then you or me, we all have challenges though some have to deal with those challenges a little different.
Every training class I have conducted I usually have one or two officers come up to me during breaks and thank me for “getting the word out” because they know it’s needed. They also respect the fact I have worn a badge and fully understand their perspective and have Empathy for both sides, parents and officers.
Dustin
Betsy85 I agree that there should be more training. We are expecting our officers to handle situations they simply aren’t ready to handle. Lack of knowledge can be corrected via training. We must also recognize and share with the LEOs the resources that are available to them when dealing with Mental Health. The best options are not always psych ward or jail. Again, raising the level of understanding goes a long way. If we lack knowledge about something we often times become fearful of it.
I think this is a great idea however it falls short. What about additional mental health disorders such as schizophrenia, ODD, OCD, ADHD, and even a combination of many others. I work with special needs and know how quickly things can go from great to all out end of the world!
Public sector workers that would come into contact with people with alternate abilities, different ways of thinking in a rushed, high stress, emergency situations should be well trained to confidently handle any situation.
Hi we need the help of the asd community please read the following and click the link as we’d like to invite you to our boys group to help us change things there is a petition there we need signing and would really appreciate your help
http://autism-memorial.livejournal.com/50669.html
https://www.facebook.com/groups/riplittleharry/
NicolaSmithCarlile Very interesting. Do you have a web site?
I have already devised an Autism Awareness course that I have been delivering to the Met police in Westminster as part of their mandatory training days at Charing Cross police station.
I have to say that this training has been well received and the police are extremely interested in subject and how they can deal with the issues that Autisitc people and their carers face. I still get emissions from them asking for help and advice.
They responded well to the course and have been putting their knowledge into practice as I am also receiving emails and calls from parents.
I have contacted several organisations related to Autism that I am delivering these training courses but I am yet to hear from them to my amazement as I would of thought it would be something they would be interested in knowing.
I am a mother of a child with autism and have worked in special needs environment for over seven years I am also on the management committee for organisations who have also asked me to train them.
If you would like further I formation or help please do not hesitate to contact me.
autism STEP Not sure how we can help. Your best best is to speak with the local ASD NGO they would be better placed to assist.
I have been contacting the education division of the NSW Police force to conduct this training.
Could I please have details of who organised this topic of discussion and who its going to , to assist in my campaign to implement training programs.
I’d really appreciate your assistance
I think they should because my partner got stop by the police to pick my up from town because he answer in a austic way they got in his face then threatened him that he shouldent be driving or out and about the one even and he was trying to his dad for help they tried stopping him he was treated poorly
Hi we need the help of the asd community please read the following and click the link as we’d like to invite you to our boys group to help us change things there is a petition there we need signing and would really appreciate your help
http://autism-memorial.livejournal.com/50669.html
https://www.facebook.com/groups/riplittleharry/
I think this is a good move. The police should be awear of issues surrounding Autisum and other types of disability. But also it is hard for them. People who are drunk or high on drugs will often act like they are on the spectrum. Sometimes it is hard. Not everyone on the spectrum looks like they have a disability othert do.
The police should know that people with autism are normal. And they need to be taught in general the common things people do, how they act, and they even should spend some time around them to gain a full understanding, also they should watch videos like the youtube series Ask An Autistic. The presenter she has autism and explains it really well, with good information on how it affects people and what it’s like.