Autism Families Living with Elevated Fears of Police Encounters

The death of George Floyd in Minneapolis earlier this year has once again highlighted the ongoing and problematic issue related to police encounters between many African Americans and the law enforcement community. Years of mistrust, racial tensions and high-profile incidents stemming from police contacts have finally boiled over into a full-fledged crisis for the country.

For autism families, related concerns also exist over the risks from their loved ones interacting with police. In fact, it’s estimated that 1 in 5 teens with autism will be stopped and questioned by an officer before their 21st birthday. With autism rates currently at 1 in 54, this translates into a significant amount of police encounters that have the potential to go horribly wrong, something that has many autism parents on edge and has created an elevated level of fear for their loved ones’ safety.

At the forefront of this issue is Dennis Debbaudt of Autism Risk & Safety Management and Debbaudt Legacy Productions, a former private investigator, author and father of an adult with autism who for the past 25 years has served as a liaison between law enforcement agencies and the autism community through training, curriculum and advocacy. The underlying mission of his work is to educate law enforcement about how to avoid unfortunate situations when encountering individuals with autism and related disorders.

“In my training classes, the first thing I teach is the value of disclosure,” said Debbaudt from his Florida home. “The sooner the disclosure is made about a person’s condition, the more likely it is that all parties will end up safe.”

That disclosure, Debbaudt explained, can occur in a variety of ways, which can include anything from wristbands, license plates, bumper stickers, neighborhood signs, radio frequency identification (RFID) technology and even a verbal statement such as “I have autism” or “I’m stimming.” There are also efforts underway and in place to link DMV/license information to autistic individuals so officers are aware of a person’s condition before making contact during traffic stops.

A subset within the autism community particularly hit hard by this issue involves people of color, who Debbaudt says are “at least twice as likely” to have a negative outcome when interacting with police. Being “different” from the norm tends to elevate risk and the overlapping characteristics of being black and having autism can often exacerbate tensions during a police encounter.

“I’ve had the talk with my son over and over about what to do when the police approach him. Imagine having to have that talk twice for different, still dangerous, reasons? My friends of color are all well aware through experiences of why the talk is needed. South Carolina U.S. Senator Tim Scott speaks with authority about being approached throughout his lifetime by police for being black. When you add in autism to the mix, the results can be devastating,” Debbaudt said.

Many times, officers have limited information when arriving at a scene and can misconstrue autism mannerisms for drug-related behavior or mental health concerns. Split-second decisions that are made during this time can have far-reaching consequences and upend the lives of all parties involved, including family members and entire communities.

As an example, one of the more high profile police/autism incidents in recent memory is the 2016 case of Charles Kinsey, a caretaker who was shot by police for attempting to retrieve his severely autistic patient who had wandered away from a group home. A passerby called 911 and reported a suspicious man in the street. Subsequently, Kinsey was shot in the leg while his hands were in the air by an officer who was aiming for the patient, perceiving that Kinsey was being threatened with a gun. The “gun” ended up being a toy truck. Kinsey recovered from his wounds and the officer was ultimately acquitted for attempted manslaughter.

Being familiar with the incident, Debbaudt noted that the Kinsey case included the 3 highest level risk factors when police officers encounter someone with autism. They include:

1) A less independent person who has broken away from their care (wandering)
2) An officer arriving at a scene due, in part, to a suspicious person call
3) Individuals engaging in an act of aggression who know each other (domestic violence)

As unfortunate as this case was, it did have some silver linings which included newly passed legislation in Florida that directed the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to create curriculum for police training and educational purposes.

Every law enforcement interaction, including those involving individuals with autism, all come with their own set of facts and circumstances. The vast majority of police officers are well-intended and are extremely receptive to the training that Debbaudt provides. One of his long-term goals, he said, is to have all police officers “be able to identify autism behaviors just as easily as they can identify the behaviors of someone who is drunk or impaired.”

If successful, the end result will be lives saved and peace-of-mind for autism families, who can be assured that their loved ones will have a reduced risk when encountering the police.

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RESOURCES:

• Autism Risk and Safety Management

• Safeguarding Your Child with Autism: Strategies and Tools to Reduce Risks