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Autism and the Law: When Trouble Comes Our Way
“I may have the advantage of race and gender. I may be able to stave off a meltdown for a short period. I may try my hardest to comply and be non-threatening, but I’m only ever one misunderstanding or nervous officer away from death. And it may be, in any given encounter, that there’s nothing...
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Crisis Management in Children with Autism and First Responders
Children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are more likely to engage in challenging behavior than their neurotypical peers. Severity of these behaviors range from mild to very severe and include topographies such as aggression, self-injury, destructive behavior, pica, and elopement...
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Educating First Responders to Improve Encounters with Autistic Individuals
It is estimated there are more than 3.5 million Americans living with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and the number continues to grow.1 According to CDC statistics, the prevalence of autism has increased from 1 in 150 children born in 2000 to 1 in 54 as of 2020.2 This expanding segment of the...
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Improving Interactions Between Police and People with Autism
A man stands among an aisle at a store. He doesn’t talk with anyone or interfere with their shopping, but he’s making the store’s employees uncomfortable, nonetheless. He picks up a product from the shelf, examines it closely, and returns it to its original place. He repeats the process again...
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How Spectrum Designs Foundation Pivoted to Support First Responders and Healthcare Providers
Six or so weeks ago, when the COVID-19 crisis ramped up and then effectively halted life as we know it, the team at Spectrum Designs Foundation was on schedule to break previous sales records, offer more individuals with Autism paid employment opportunities and open the doors to our anticipated new...
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First Responders Promote Awareness and Training Through the Autism Patch Challenge
A simple idea to bring autism awareness to the New Rochelle Police Department and the City of New Rochelle, NY, has since spread to over 350 first responder agencies around the United States, and continues to grow with each passing month. On February 7, 2017, I made an appointment to meet with...
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Autism and Law Enforcement: Training, and When to Say No
This article aims to stimulate discussion concerning the balance between teaching individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to trust law enforcement to keep them safe, and the need to interact with those same professionals in a way that preserves their rights. The lack of training to...
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Researchers Explore Virtual Reality to Build Crucial Social and Safety Skills
Those in the autism community are familiar with missed social connections, but misunderstood behaviors have the potential to escalate quickly during interactions with law enforcement. A recent study1 found that 1 in 5 young adults with ASD will be stopped and questioned by police before age 21 and...
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Interacting Safely with Police: Crucial Skills for Individuals Across the Spectrum
Parents of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often have a long list of safety concerns, no matter the age of their children. Parents need to focus on creating a secure home environment, preventing wandering and teaching water safety. Yet there is another critical area of need that...
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Pathways to Justice: Beyond Crisis De-Escalation Training
A persistent and much-debated question for criminal justice professionals has been the treatment of individuals with developmental disabilities as criminal defendants, as victims of crime, and as witnesses of crime. Issues arise from the moment of contact with a first responder. Since the...
