WEBVTT - Bart Barta: Training First Responders for Autism Encounters

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Why Not Me the World? Podcast hosted by

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<v Speaker 1>Tony Mantor, broadcasting from Music City, USA, Nashville, Tennessee. Join

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<v Speaker 1>us as our guests tell us their stories. Some will

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<v Speaker 1>make you laugh, some will make you cry. Real life

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<v Speaker 1>people who will inspire and show that you are not

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<v Speaker 1>alone in this world. Hopefully you gain more awareness, acceptance,

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<v Speaker 1>and a better understanding for autism around the world. Hi,

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<v Speaker 1>I'm Tony Mantor. Welcome to Why Not Me the World?

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<v Speaker 1>Humanity over Handcuffs the Silent Crisis special event. Joining us

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<v Speaker 1>to is Bart Barter. He is a retired law enforcement

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<v Speaker 1>commander with over thirty one years of experience. He joins

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<v Speaker 1>us today to discuss his company, Autism Safety one oh one,

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<v Speaker 1>whose mission is to provide first responders with the necessary

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<v Speaker 1>tools and tactics to achieve optimal outcomes when interacting with

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<v Speaker 1>individuals on the autism spectrum. He possesses a wealth of

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<v Speaker 1>knowledge and we are just so delighted to have him

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<v Speaker 1>on the show. Thanks for coming on.

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<v Speaker 2>It's a pleasure. Thank you for having me.

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<v Speaker 1>Oh, it's my pleasure if you would tell us what

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<v Speaker 1>you do now.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm a retired law enforcement commander. I had a thirty

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<v Speaker 2>one year law enforcement career. Eighteen years ago, my world,

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<v Speaker 2>the world of my family was forever changed. My wife

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<v Speaker 2>and I have three sons, all adults. Our youngest adult,

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<v Speaker 2>Sign was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder when he was

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<v Speaker 2>three years old. He went in for his three year

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<v Speaker 2>pediacor checkup. That's when the pediatrician diagnosed him, and then

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<v Speaker 2>we later followed up with a to the pediatric neurologists

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<v Speaker 2>to confirmed the pediatricians diagnosis. Not knowing anything about autism

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<v Speaker 2>at all, it set myself and my wife on this

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<v Speaker 2>journey to try to learn as much as we possibly could.

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<v Speaker 2>We wanted to give our son the greatest opportunity at

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<v Speaker 2>reaching his fullest potential in life, whatever that might be.

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<v Speaker 2>We didn't know at the time would he even be

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<v Speaker 2>able to communicate with us. He was verbal, only spoke

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<v Speaker 2>a few words. He engaged in a lot of echoalia

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<v Speaker 2>things like that, So to say we were scared would

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<v Speaker 2>be like an understatement. We realized that we were really

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<v Speaker 2>going to have to pour ourselves into him and try

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<v Speaker 2>to help him reach his full potential. While all of

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<v Speaker 2>this is going on, I'm working as a police officer

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<v Speaker 2>and for management role was a lieutenant at the time

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<v Speaker 2>at the police department in South Florida where we were living,

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<v Speaker 2>and I quickly realized that law enforcement was not training

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<v Speaker 2>its officers in how to recognize and respond to individuals

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<v Speaker 2>on the autism spectrum. I kept seeing stories in the

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<v Speaker 2>news involving encounters between law enforcement and individuals on the

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<v Speaker 2>autism spectrum, and they weren't favorable stories. I really felt

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<v Speaker 2>like we could do better in this area. So I

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<v Speaker 2>was working for the Coral Gables Police Department at the time,

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<v Speaker 2>which is a bedroom community of Miami. In the city

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<v Speaker 2>of Coral Gables is the University of Miami, and they

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<v Speaker 2>have something there called the Centers for Autism and Related Disabilities.

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<v Speaker 2>So I reached out to them. I see this real

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<v Speaker 2>need here in developing some curriculum for law enforcement. Can

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<v Speaker 2>you help me. I'm not an expert in autism, but

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<v Speaker 2>I needed to go to the experts in autism so

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<v Speaker 2>that we could create some evidence based training for law

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<v Speaker 2>enforcement officers to help them better recognize respond to individuals

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<v Speaker 2>with autism, so that at the end of the day,

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<v Speaker 2>the individuals with autism is kept safe as possible and

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<v Speaker 2>the officers remained safe.

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<v Speaker 1>If possible. So what happened out of that meeting.

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<v Speaker 2>They agreed to help me and assist me on this

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<v Speaker 2>and set me on this journey. While still working full

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<v Speaker 2>time for the police department, I started working with something

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<v Speaker 2>called the Crisis Intervention Team Training Program or C program.

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<v Speaker 2>It was a program that came about to aid law

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<v Speaker 2>enforcement officers and how to better recognize and respond to

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<v Speaker 2>individuals who might have mental illness. I started working with

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<v Speaker 2>this program in Miami Dade County probably eighteen years now,

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<v Speaker 2>started working with this program and started training South Florida

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<v Speaker 2>law enforcement officers, primarily Miami Dade County. I would come

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<v Speaker 2>into this forty hour block of C instruction and I

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<v Speaker 2>would do about a two two and a half hour

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<v Speaker 2>block on autism. And I did this, I don't know,

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<v Speaker 2>for probably for more than ten years. After doing that,

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<v Speaker 2>as I was getting closer to retirement and I was

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<v Speaker 2>still doing this training, but because of my full time

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<v Speaker 2>responsibilities as a law enforce of commander, couldn't really pour

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<v Speaker 2>myself in full time into doing this kind of training. So,

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<v Speaker 2>as I could see I was getting closer and closer

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<v Speaker 2>to retirement, my wife and I had this discussion. We

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<v Speaker 2>decided together to try to launch a training business, training

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<v Speaker 2>consulting business so that we could work with first responders

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<v Speaker 2>to help them better recognize and respond to individuals with autism.

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<v Speaker 2>That's what I've been doing ever since.

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<v Speaker 1>Sounds like a great idea. What happened next for you?

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<v Speaker 2>So I retired in the end of twenty seventeen. Before retiring,

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<v Speaker 2>I had launched Autism Safety one oh one. I travel

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<v Speaker 2>all across the United States of America, providing training primarily

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<v Speaker 2>to law enforcement, but I also trained firefighters, EMS, I've

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<v Speaker 2>trained correctional personnel, security personnel, and I really feel that

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<v Speaker 2>it's crucial all first responders received this training, and so

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<v Speaker 2>that's where I got started.

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<v Speaker 1>When you have a class, what does your audience look like?

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<v Speaker 1>Is it police, firefighters, EMTs, operators from the nine to

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<v Speaker 1>one to one com centers or do you talk with

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<v Speaker 1>each one of them individually as a group.

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<v Speaker 2>Generally, the class is specific to the audience. So if

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<v Speaker 2>it's primarily a law enforcement, say it's a police department.

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<v Speaker 2>I was just recently contacted by a police department in Georgia,

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<v Speaker 2>just outside of Atlanta. Shamily, Georgia chief of police contacted

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<v Speaker 2>me and asked me if I could do a couple

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<v Speaker 2>of eight hour trainings there for his officers and the

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<v Speaker 2>local law enforcement partners in that area. We've scheduled two

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<v Speaker 2>dates in April and I will go up there and

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<v Speaker 2>that class will just encompass primarily law enforcement officers. I

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<v Speaker 2>do trainings right now. In fact, I have some fire

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<v Speaker 2>rescue in South Florida. They have me come in twice

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<v Speaker 2>a month to provide autism training to their firefighters, and

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<v Speaker 2>that is just specific to firefighting. There is some overlap.

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<v Speaker 2>There is times occasionally, and it doesn't happen very often,

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<v Speaker 2>maybe less than five percent of my trainings include a

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<v Speaker 2>mixed first responder audience, meaning there'll be police in the

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<v Speaker 2>audience and there'll be firefighters in the audience. That doesn't

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<v Speaker 2>happen very often. Normally it's centric to whatever audience is.

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<v Speaker 2>So I have a training for school resource officers. People

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<v Speaker 2>may not realize this, but policing in schools is a

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<v Speaker 2>lot different than policing on the street. So I come

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<v Speaker 2>in and I have a background in that as well.

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<v Speaker 2>When I was a sergeant earlier in my career, I

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<v Speaker 2>used to oversee and supervise school resource officers. I have

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<v Speaker 2>a training specific to them. And we talk about students

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<v Speaker 2>with autism in the schools and things like that. Training

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<v Speaker 2>that I do is tailor specifically to whatever first responder

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<v Speaker 2>audience I'm dealing with.

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<v Speaker 1>What's the first thing that you tell them to start

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<v Speaker 1>your class off. They are sometimes going into the unknown.

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<v Speaker 1>They don't know whether it's autism or another mental health issue.

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<v Speaker 1>It could be ADHD, bipolars, gizophrenia, or anything else mental

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<v Speaker 1>health related with the police, sometimes they only have seconds

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<v Speaker 1>to make a determination. So how do you tell them

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<v Speaker 1>to approach it so the situation does not get out

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<v Speaker 1>of control, so it can be handled in a very

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<v Speaker 1>good way where everybody walks away knowing that they did

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<v Speaker 1>their very best to ultimately have a satisfying conclusion.

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<v Speaker 2>It's a great question. So here's the thing, right, this

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<v Speaker 2>is really important. I have to start off with helping

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<v Speaker 2>these officers understand what autism is. If you don't understand

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<v Speaker 2>the challenges and the needs of people with autism, you're

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<v Speaker 2>not going to recognize it. And unfortunately, this is what

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<v Speaker 2>happens in some cases too often, where law enforcement officers

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<v Speaker 2>do not receive meaningful training in autism, officers will oftentimes

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<v Speaker 2>misinterpret the person's behavior or their lack of communication, and

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<v Speaker 2>they'll take one course of action, where if they had

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<v Speaker 2>some understanding about autism, then they might take a different

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<v Speaker 2>course of action. I have to break it down into

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<v Speaker 2>its simplest part so that these officers truly understand what

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<v Speaker 2>it's like to be in the body of a person

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<v Speaker 2>with autism and understand all those unique challenges that come

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<v Speaker 2>along with that disability. Part of that is helping them

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<v Speaker 2>to understand when and where we can to try to

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<v Speaker 2>slow things down as much as we possibly can. We

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<v Speaker 2>have to be patient. We have to give them time

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<v Speaker 2>to process what it is that we're asking them or

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<v Speaker 2>telling them to do. If we expect them to immediately

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<v Speaker 2>respond or comply with our questions, our request, in many cases,

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<v Speaker 2>it's not going to happen. It's imperative that law enforce

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<v Speaker 2>since officers understand these challenges. Once they understand the challenges

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<v Speaker 2>that follow this disability, then we implement the strategies and

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<v Speaker 2>how to de escalate possible rice's situations or meltdowns that

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<v Speaker 2>might be occurring. So it's not like there's a silver

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<v Speaker 2>bullet here and you can come in and go, Okay,

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<v Speaker 2>do this every time, and then everything is wonderful, and

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<v Speaker 2>it's great because it is a wide spectrum and it

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<v Speaker 2>affects people differently. It's been said once. I think it

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<v Speaker 2>was doctor Stephen Shore that came out with this saying

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<v Speaker 2>he said, if you've met one person with autism, you've

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<v Speaker 2>met one person with autism. Right, No, two people with

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<v Speaker 2>autism are identical. And that's important too, because law enforcement officers,

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<v Speaker 2>we are trained to recognize pattern We are great at

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<v Speaker 2>recognizing patterns. If you've seen something enough times, go oh,

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<v Speaker 2>I know what this is. It's a little bit more

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<v Speaker 2>challenging when you're dealing with somebody with autism, who might

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<v Speaker 2>have serious communication challenges, who struggle socially, who might even

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<v Speaker 2>have an intellectual disability on top of that, coupled with

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<v Speaker 2>pull occurring mental health dishorders and other things. So let

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<v Speaker 2>me say this to you. And this is one thing

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<v Speaker 2>I hope your listeners take away if they're looking to

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<v Speaker 2>help law enforcement officers and their communities receive this kind

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<v Speaker 2>of training, is you can't do this online in a

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<v Speaker 2>half an hour or an hour, you can't do it.

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<v Speaker 2>I tell chiefs of police, they'll contact me from time

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<v Speaker 2>to time and they'll say bart and you come train

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<v Speaker 2>the troops. And I'll say, sure thing, Chief, what do

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<v Speaker 2>you have in mind? And they'll say, well, what about

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<v Speaker 2>roll calls? Now, roll calls are like briefings that occur

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<v Speaker 2>at the very beginning of the shift. Used to see

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<v Speaker 2>it like if you watch shows like Hill Street Blues.

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<v Speaker 2>The sergeant would come in, he would address the officers

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<v Speaker 2>and things and give them kind of the instructions for

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<v Speaker 2>the day. Those are role calls, right. Generally roll calls

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<v Speaker 2>don't last more than fifteen minutes to a half an hour.

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<v Speaker 2>So I asked the chief what do you have in mind?

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<v Speaker 2>And they'll say, what about a roll call? And I'll

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<v Speaker 2>say how long do your roll calls last? And they'll say,

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<v Speaker 2>we can do forty five minutes. And then I stop

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<v Speaker 2>them right then and there, and I tell them, Chief,

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<v Speaker 2>all due respect, I can come in, I can talk

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<v Speaker 2>to your officers for forty five minutes about individuals with autism.

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<v Speaker 2>But they're not going to get much out of it.

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<v Speaker 2>And they scratch their heads and they look puzzled. Right,

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<v Speaker 2>because I can't understand this, right, tell them, don't do

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<v Speaker 2>anything less than four hours. I hate doing four hour

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<v Speaker 2>trainings because when I do four hour training sessions with

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<v Speaker 2>law enforcement officers. I feel like this, like they're trying

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<v Speaker 2>to drink water from a fire hose, right. It's coming

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<v Speaker 2>down a fast and hard and quick, and it doesn't

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<v Speaker 2>allow for the engagement or the interaction that I really

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<v Speaker 2>like to see occur in these training sessions with law

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<v Speaker 2>enforcement officers. So I tell all these chiefs, I tell

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<v Speaker 2>all these shares, don't do anything less than eight. But

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<v Speaker 2>I would tell you, Tony, unfortunately a lot of law

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<v Speaker 2>enforcement commanders, chiefs of police and shriffs are reluctant to

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<v Speaker 2>do eight hour trainings. I'm very encouraged when law enforcement

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<v Speaker 2>agencies do eight hour trainings, but I refuse to do

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<v Speaker 2>anything less than four because I don't want to give

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<v Speaker 2>short shrift. And some people say, what about an online training?

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<v Speaker 2>Why don't you do online trainers? And I tell them

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<v Speaker 2>because one quite honestly, Tony, most police officers don't want

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<v Speaker 2>to watch online training. If it's more than thirty minutes,

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<v Speaker 2>then they start tuning out. And if they're not compelled

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<v Speaker 2>to sit there and watch it, they'll be easily distracted.

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<v Speaker 2>They'll be looking at their cell phone or one thing

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<v Speaker 2>or another, and they're not really learning it right, they're

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<v Speaker 2>not really getting it, they're not really understanding it. Is

0:13:08.880 --> 0:13:11.440
<v Speaker 2>it a lot of work to do in person training.

0:13:11.679 --> 0:13:15.439
<v Speaker 2>It is, but I personally have a vested interest in this.

0:13:15.679 --> 0:13:18.199
<v Speaker 1>Do you tell them about your son in their training?

0:13:18.440 --> 0:13:20.560
<v Speaker 2>I tell all these officers all the time, I have

0:13:20.640 --> 0:13:23.800
<v Speaker 2>a son who's twenty one years old and who is

0:13:23.840 --> 0:13:26.120
<v Speaker 2>more than likely going to come in contact with you

0:13:26.160 --> 0:13:29.360
<v Speaker 2>at some point in time. Others, it's not questioning if

0:13:29.600 --> 0:13:32.400
<v Speaker 2>it's only a matter of when they come in contact

0:13:32.480 --> 0:13:35.800
<v Speaker 2>with a law enforcement officer. In fact, there's studies recently

0:13:35.920 --> 0:13:40.240
<v Speaker 2>that show that individuals with autism are seven times more

0:13:40.559 --> 0:13:44.720
<v Speaker 2>likely to encounter a law enforcement officer than someone without autism. Okay,

0:13:44.840 --> 0:13:47.640
<v Speaker 2>so there's been some studies too recently. By the time

0:13:47.720 --> 0:13:49.520
<v Speaker 2>I think that by the time they're eighteen years old,

0:13:49.559 --> 0:13:52.600
<v Speaker 2>more than a quarter of them have already encountered a

0:13:52.679 --> 0:13:53.680
<v Speaker 2>law enforcement officer.

0:13:54.040 --> 0:13:55.920
<v Speaker 1>Wow, that's pretty staggering numbers.

0:13:56.080 --> 0:13:58.320
<v Speaker 2>I will say this, It's not all doom and gloom.

0:13:58.520 --> 0:14:02.400
<v Speaker 2>I am optimistic. I'm seeing law enforcement leaders, sheriffs, chests

0:14:02.440 --> 0:14:05.320
<v Speaker 2>of police are really starting to embrace this and understanding

0:14:05.480 --> 0:14:09.199
<v Speaker 2>that people with autism are a significant part of their communities.

0:14:09.320 --> 0:14:12.480
<v Speaker 2>They're a part of the citizenry that they serve really important.

0:14:12.559 --> 0:14:15.719
<v Speaker 2>If you want to serve your citizens, well understand your

0:14:15.760 --> 0:14:19.880
<v Speaker 2>citizens and those agencies that invest the time. I get

0:14:19.920 --> 0:14:23.280
<v Speaker 2>a lot of feedback after my trainings. Sometimes years later,

0:14:23.360 --> 0:14:25.800
<v Speaker 2>I'll have officers that will email me or they'll call

0:14:25.840 --> 0:14:27.480
<v Speaker 2>me and they'll say, I got to tell you about

0:14:27.520 --> 0:14:29.520
<v Speaker 2>this call that I went on, and let me tell

0:14:29.520 --> 0:14:31.920
<v Speaker 2>you what happened, And I'm so glad that I came

0:14:31.960 --> 0:14:35.280
<v Speaker 2>through your training because now I've felt so confident in

0:14:35.360 --> 0:14:39.080
<v Speaker 2>handling this situation and they had a successful outcome. If

0:14:39.160 --> 0:14:42.360
<v Speaker 2>you don't do this kind of training, you're setting your

0:14:42.400 --> 0:14:45.640
<v Speaker 2>officers up for failure. And I don't blame these officers.

0:14:45.720 --> 0:14:48.800
<v Speaker 2>I've seen stories in the news where officers have had

0:14:49.040 --> 0:14:52.720
<v Speaker 2>unfortunately negative contacts with individuals with autism. And if you

0:14:52.800 --> 0:14:56.840
<v Speaker 2>go and you start looking into the situation, what you

0:14:56.880 --> 0:15:00.240
<v Speaker 2>will discover In most of these cases, these officers that

0:15:00.280 --> 0:15:03.360
<v Speaker 2>you're seeing in the news that had these horrific incidents

0:15:03.360 --> 0:15:07.200
<v Speaker 2>involving individuals with autism, they'd have little to no training

0:15:07.200 --> 0:15:09.560
<v Speaker 2>in autism. Now, whose fault is that? Is that the

0:15:09.560 --> 0:15:12.440
<v Speaker 2>officer's fault. A lot of people in the autism community

0:15:12.440 --> 0:15:15.080
<v Speaker 2>and parents and caregivers, they get upset. I've seen them

0:15:15.280 --> 0:15:18.160
<v Speaker 2>say that officer should be fired, he should be suspended

0:15:18.200 --> 0:15:20.360
<v Speaker 2>without pay. And I tell them every time, I said,

0:15:20.560 --> 0:15:22.320
<v Speaker 2>have you looked in to see whether or not this

0:15:22.440 --> 0:15:26.080
<v Speaker 2>officer's had any training whatsoever? And in most cases they haven't.

0:15:26.320 --> 0:15:28.760
<v Speaker 2>Is it fair to blame the officer? Because the truth is, Tony,

0:15:28.800 --> 0:15:30.720
<v Speaker 2>you don't know what you don't know, and if you

0:15:30.760 --> 0:15:33.400
<v Speaker 2>don't have this kind of training, you're not going to understand.

0:15:34.000 --> 0:15:36.000
<v Speaker 2>That's why I do what I do, and I do

0:15:36.120 --> 0:15:39.800
<v Speaker 2>it passionately. Every time I do these trainings, I try

0:15:40.000 --> 0:15:44.240
<v Speaker 2>to bring folks in the autism community into these training sessions.

0:15:44.560 --> 0:15:46.720
<v Speaker 2>Generally it happens towards the end of the training where

0:15:46.760 --> 0:15:50.600
<v Speaker 2>I give them an opportunity to interact and engage with

0:15:50.720 --> 0:15:53.880
<v Speaker 2>these first responders, because that's where the most significant part

0:15:53.920 --> 0:15:57.560
<v Speaker 2>of this training occurs, is that interaction that curves between

0:15:57.800 --> 0:16:01.720
<v Speaker 2>individuals with autism and law enforce. And the more opportunities

0:16:01.760 --> 0:16:05.000
<v Speaker 2>we can create where we can bring people with autism

0:16:05.080 --> 0:16:07.960
<v Speaker 2>into a setting with law enforcement officers and a non

0:16:08.040 --> 0:16:11.640
<v Speaker 2>crisis situation, it's a win for the individual with autism

0:16:11.720 --> 0:16:14.120
<v Speaker 2>and it's a win for the first responder. So I

0:16:14.240 --> 0:16:18.280
<v Speaker 2>encourage these officers. I encourage these command staffs with these

0:16:18.320 --> 0:16:22.960
<v Speaker 2>police departments and these fire departments to have your personnel

0:16:23.360 --> 0:16:27.240
<v Speaker 2>regularly engage with people on the spectrum, because again, like

0:16:27.280 --> 0:16:29.600
<v Speaker 2>I said earlier, if you meet one person with autism,

0:16:29.600 --> 0:16:32.960
<v Speaker 2>you met one person with autism, and it's a wide spectrum.

0:16:33.160 --> 0:16:36.840
<v Speaker 1>When you first start talking with the officers, it's like

0:16:36.920 --> 0:16:40.600
<v Speaker 1>anything else. It can be two hours, four hours, six hours,

0:16:40.640 --> 0:16:43.680
<v Speaker 1>eight hours. At the end of any conference, whether it's

0:16:43.720 --> 0:16:46.240
<v Speaker 1>two hours all the way up to eight hours, there's

0:16:46.280 --> 0:16:49.360
<v Speaker 1>going to be certain points that they remember. There will

0:16:49.360 --> 0:16:52.320
<v Speaker 1>be certain points they will forget. How do you get

0:16:52.360 --> 0:16:55.720
<v Speaker 1>the points to cross that you feel are most vital

0:16:55.800 --> 0:16:58.720
<v Speaker 1>for them to remember? That way they do not forget it,

0:16:58.880 --> 0:17:01.960
<v Speaker 1>because as we know, it's the most important things that

0:17:02.000 --> 0:17:04.200
<v Speaker 1>they remember. Even if they forget some of the little

0:17:04.200 --> 0:17:08.119
<v Speaker 1>things that hopefully they retain that could be most important

0:17:08.359 --> 0:17:11.800
<v Speaker 1>to having a much better outcome than what it could

0:17:11.800 --> 0:17:12.200
<v Speaker 1>have been.

0:17:12.640 --> 0:17:14.560
<v Speaker 2>That's a great question, and one of the things that

0:17:14.600 --> 0:17:17.879
<v Speaker 2>I try to stress again is patients trying to slow

0:17:17.960 --> 0:17:21.400
<v Speaker 2>things down the best you possibly can. You are correct,

0:17:21.520 --> 0:17:25.120
<v Speaker 2>is officers respond to various calls for service. They're responding

0:17:25.160 --> 0:17:28.600
<v Speaker 2>based on the information that's received, and oftentimes that comes

0:17:28.600 --> 0:17:31.960
<v Speaker 2>from a dispatcher, right, a communications operator nine one operator

0:17:32.119 --> 0:17:34.320
<v Speaker 2>is giving the information the officer. So oftentimes when the

0:17:34.359 --> 0:17:37.080
<v Speaker 2>officers are arriving on the scene, they're responding with only

0:17:37.119 --> 0:17:40.040
<v Speaker 2>a little bit of information and they have to quickly

0:17:40.119 --> 0:17:44.560
<v Speaker 2>assess and determine what is going on, and sometimes only seconds,

0:17:44.680 --> 0:17:47.439
<v Speaker 2>and so they're trying to process all this information as

0:17:47.520 --> 0:17:50.680
<v Speaker 2>quickly as possible. If the individual does not have a weapon,

0:17:50.880 --> 0:17:52.440
<v Speaker 2>I mean they have a knife or a gun or

0:17:52.480 --> 0:17:55.560
<v Speaker 2>something like that, this affords us an opportunity to try

0:17:55.560 --> 0:17:58.320
<v Speaker 2>to slow things down, right, to try to practice some

0:17:58.400 --> 0:18:01.480
<v Speaker 2>patients and telling them that when you're trying to communicate

0:18:01.560 --> 0:18:05.800
<v Speaker 2>with somebody with autism, use the fewest words possible, use concrete,

0:18:05.920 --> 0:18:10.360
<v Speaker 2>simple language, because many people with autism process language differently

0:18:10.560 --> 0:18:13.119
<v Speaker 2>than the rest of us. If you tell someone with

0:18:13.240 --> 0:18:17.240
<v Speaker 2>autism freeze, that means something to you, it means something

0:18:17.280 --> 0:18:20.400
<v Speaker 2>to me, but that means something completely different to them.

0:18:20.920 --> 0:18:25.800
<v Speaker 2>You need to use simple, concrete, direct language. You need

0:18:25.840 --> 0:18:29.600
<v Speaker 2>to keep it as simple and as few words possible,

0:18:30.119 --> 0:18:34.240
<v Speaker 2>giving them as much time to respond is necessary. Right,

0:18:34.359 --> 0:18:37.000
<v Speaker 2>you may have someone who is a serious eloper and

0:18:37.160 --> 0:18:39.720
<v Speaker 2>all of a sudden, they bolt and they take off

0:18:39.800 --> 0:18:42.480
<v Speaker 2>and they start running, and maybe they're starting to run

0:18:42.480 --> 0:18:45.359
<v Speaker 2>for the middle of a busy highway or a busy street.

0:18:45.640 --> 0:18:48.480
<v Speaker 2>That officer at that point in time might have to

0:18:48.520 --> 0:18:51.119
<v Speaker 2>go hands on. They might have to use force to

0:18:51.200 --> 0:18:54.600
<v Speaker 2>stop that person. Some folks with autism have no fear

0:18:54.640 --> 0:18:57.120
<v Speaker 2>of danger, so they might just take off and run

0:18:57.119 --> 0:18:58.640
<v Speaker 2>out right in the middle street, and in that case,

0:18:58.720 --> 0:19:01.080
<v Speaker 2>officer has to go hands on immediately. But one of

0:19:01.119 --> 0:19:03.840
<v Speaker 2>the things I try to tell them, if ever possible,

0:19:04.000 --> 0:19:07.760
<v Speaker 2>try to avoid touching them. If somebody with autism is

0:19:07.880 --> 0:19:11.560
<v Speaker 2>actively trying to hurt another person, just because you have

0:19:11.560 --> 0:19:14.560
<v Speaker 2>a disability doesn't give you a license to afflict violence

0:19:14.600 --> 0:19:17.400
<v Speaker 2>on another person. You might have to stop that person

0:19:17.800 --> 0:19:21.280
<v Speaker 2>from inflicting violence onto another person. You might have to

0:19:21.320 --> 0:19:24.240
<v Speaker 2>go hands on. And we talk about what you should

0:19:24.240 --> 0:19:26.840
<v Speaker 2>do if in fact you do go hands on with

0:19:26.880 --> 0:19:29.200
<v Speaker 2>somebody with autism. We give some tips and strategies and

0:19:29.240 --> 0:19:32.000
<v Speaker 2>things like that. Those are the key things right there

0:19:32.200 --> 0:19:36.520
<v Speaker 2>is helping them understand one, the processing of your instructions

0:19:36.560 --> 0:19:38.960
<v Speaker 2>and your language and understanding this too. Tony and I

0:19:39.000 --> 0:19:41.439
<v Speaker 2>can bring this up. You have a large percentage of

0:19:41.480 --> 0:19:45.280
<v Speaker 2>people with autism that are nonverbal or low verbal, and

0:19:45.359 --> 0:19:48.720
<v Speaker 2>if they can speak, it might only be a few words. Now,

0:19:48.720 --> 0:19:52.760
<v Speaker 2>having said that, just because someone doesn't have verbal language

0:19:52.800 --> 0:19:56.040
<v Speaker 2>doesn't mean they don't understand you. Doesn't mean they're even

0:19:56.119 --> 0:19:59.320
<v Speaker 2>low intelligence, right or low IQ. It doesn't mean that

0:19:59.359 --> 0:20:01.600
<v Speaker 2>they might not even be able to communicate with you.

0:20:01.680 --> 0:20:04.639
<v Speaker 2>And we talk about the other ways in which people

0:20:04.720 --> 0:20:10.200
<v Speaker 2>who are nonverbal are low verbal, can and oftentimes do communicate,

0:20:10.440 --> 0:20:13.160
<v Speaker 2>and we talk about how to deal with that. Sensory

0:20:13.200 --> 0:20:16.760
<v Speaker 2>issues are also something that we have to address when

0:20:16.840 --> 0:20:20.200
<v Speaker 2>we're dealing with individuals with autism. Why because you're a

0:20:20.280 --> 0:20:22.680
<v Speaker 2>law enforce and often you're coming to the scene right,

0:20:22.760 --> 0:20:26.280
<v Speaker 2>oftentimes in a sensory machine. You're driving a patrol car,

0:20:26.400 --> 0:20:30.080
<v Speaker 2>right that has lights bright lights, that has a siren,

0:20:30.200 --> 0:20:33.320
<v Speaker 2>and you're coming onto the scene. That just in and

0:20:33.359 --> 0:20:37.399
<v Speaker 2>of itself can create so much anxiety in that person

0:20:37.440 --> 0:20:42.600
<v Speaker 2>with autism that now it's escalated the situation in this person, right, So,

0:20:42.760 --> 0:20:45.399
<v Speaker 2>now what do we need to do to try to

0:20:45.520 --> 0:20:49.879
<v Speaker 2>help them manage their anxiety that they're experiencing because of

0:20:50.119 --> 0:20:53.359
<v Speaker 2>the sensory input that they're receiving. So we address things

0:20:53.400 --> 0:20:55.439
<v Speaker 2>like that, how to turn off your lights, how to

0:20:55.480 --> 0:20:57.920
<v Speaker 2>turn off your siren if you can safely turn off

0:20:57.920 --> 0:21:00.560
<v Speaker 2>your lights safely and turn off your siren, Your radio,

0:21:00.640 --> 0:21:03.879
<v Speaker 2>your police radio. Sometimes the sound of the police radio

0:21:04.080 --> 0:21:07.040
<v Speaker 2>can be unselling for some people of autism. A barking

0:21:07.119 --> 0:21:10.320
<v Speaker 2>canine companion, these kinds of things can be on for

0:21:10.400 --> 0:21:14.040
<v Speaker 2>people with autism. So we address the sensory issues. We

0:21:14.200 --> 0:21:15.960
<v Speaker 2>address that as well in the trainees.

0:21:16.400 --> 0:21:22.200
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, that's great, perfect. Actually, there's a wide spectrum in autism. However,

0:21:22.400 --> 0:21:25.200
<v Speaker 1>there's also a wide spectrum in how we treat people

0:21:25.240 --> 0:21:29.000
<v Speaker 1>with autism. The key is how we bridge that gap

0:21:29.080 --> 0:21:32.720
<v Speaker 1>between autism and the first responders. The first ones that

0:21:32.840 --> 0:21:36.360
<v Speaker 1>respond is always thought of as being the police. So

0:21:36.400 --> 0:21:39.320
<v Speaker 1>it's very important that we do bridge that gap. For sure,

0:21:39.680 --> 0:21:43.119
<v Speaker 1>hypothetical here, what happens if they have a knife, not

0:21:43.200 --> 0:21:47.639
<v Speaker 1>a gun, just a knife. They're not showing real aggressive behavior.

0:21:48.160 --> 0:21:51.080
<v Speaker 1>It's a dangerous thing to have, for sure, what do

0:21:51.160 --> 0:21:54.080
<v Speaker 1>you advise them to do? So in the end, the

0:21:54.119 --> 0:21:57.720
<v Speaker 1>outcome is one that everybody is happy with.

0:21:58.280 --> 0:22:00.200
<v Speaker 2>I've never been asked this question before, but that's a

0:22:00.200 --> 0:22:03.480
<v Speaker 2>great question. So normally what happens in law enforcement agencies

0:22:03.800 --> 0:22:06.320
<v Speaker 2>is this is a part from autism. I'm going to

0:22:06.320 --> 0:22:08.639
<v Speaker 2>address this because this is where most of this will occur.

0:22:08.960 --> 0:22:12.960
<v Speaker 2>Law enforcement agenties will create scenario based training in which

0:22:13.240 --> 0:22:17.199
<v Speaker 2>law enforcement officers will either have to move up the

0:22:17.720 --> 0:22:20.679
<v Speaker 2>use of force continuum or move down the use of

0:22:20.720 --> 0:22:25.200
<v Speaker 2>force continuum. For example, when you start to introduce lethal

0:22:25.320 --> 0:22:29.919
<v Speaker 2>weapons to a scenario, it increases the chances obviously for

0:22:30.000 --> 0:22:33.439
<v Speaker 2>a higher use of force response to whatever that officer

0:22:33.480 --> 0:22:35.440
<v Speaker 2>is dealing with. Let's say it's a knife. One of

0:22:35.480 --> 0:22:39.360
<v Speaker 2>the things too that officers are trained to do, especially

0:22:39.400 --> 0:22:42.480
<v Speaker 2>when you're dealing with individuals who have knives, if and

0:22:42.600 --> 0:22:45.080
<v Speaker 2>whenever possible. And I have to say this, if and

0:22:45.200 --> 0:22:48.439
<v Speaker 2>whenever possible, because every situation is different. Okay, there are

0:22:48.440 --> 0:22:51.560
<v Speaker 2>no two situations that are identical. What is your friend

0:22:51.840 --> 0:22:56.680
<v Speaker 2>is time and distance. If I can create more distance

0:22:56.880 --> 0:23:01.160
<v Speaker 2>between me and that person with that knife, it increases

0:23:01.440 --> 0:23:05.840
<v Speaker 2>my chances of survival and the more time if I

0:23:05.920 --> 0:23:09.760
<v Speaker 2>try to engage this person in conversation, right, we can

0:23:09.960 --> 0:23:15.120
<v Speaker 2>hopefully de escalate the situation. I will say this. There

0:23:15.320 --> 0:23:19.280
<v Speaker 2>is a scenario that I use in my training, and

0:23:19.320 --> 0:23:22.400
<v Speaker 2>this is a story that came out of an agency

0:23:22.720 --> 0:23:27.480
<v Speaker 2>in Canada years ago. This agency in Canada had created

0:23:27.640 --> 0:23:31.520
<v Speaker 2>a registry for individuals with autism. And what I really

0:23:31.600 --> 0:23:34.680
<v Speaker 2>liked about this registry. Say, for example, say nine to

0:23:34.720 --> 0:23:38.000
<v Speaker 2>one one gets a call to the residents. This home

0:23:38.160 --> 0:23:41.760
<v Speaker 2>is already been flagged because the caregiver or the parent

0:23:41.880 --> 0:23:46.719
<v Speaker 2>or guardian has registered their address with the nine one

0:23:46.960 --> 0:23:51.240
<v Speaker 2>one center, and so when first responders are en route,

0:23:51.280 --> 0:23:54.080
<v Speaker 2>the dispatcher at the nine one one center will let

0:23:54.280 --> 0:23:57.560
<v Speaker 2>the officer or the firefighter know that there is an

0:23:57.600 --> 0:24:02.080
<v Speaker 2>occupant in that home with autism, and they will provide

0:24:02.119 --> 0:24:06.879
<v Speaker 2>them their name, physical descriptors, things like that. But on

0:24:07.000 --> 0:24:10.040
<v Speaker 2>top of all that, it'll include things like does the

0:24:10.080 --> 0:24:15.240
<v Speaker 2>person have sensory issues? Does the person have communication challenges?

0:24:15.280 --> 0:24:17.800
<v Speaker 2>Are they verbal or are they nonverbal? Are they low verbal?

0:24:18.080 --> 0:24:21.399
<v Speaker 2>It could talk about whether or not they have self

0:24:21.440 --> 0:24:24.879
<v Speaker 2>regulating behaviors that they might engage in to try to

0:24:24.920 --> 0:24:29.280
<v Speaker 2>calm themselves down, and so try to help officers understand this.

0:24:29.840 --> 0:24:32.919
<v Speaker 2>Part of that includes things like what sort of things

0:24:33.040 --> 0:24:37.080
<v Speaker 2>might also help calm them down. You'll see individuals with autism,

0:24:37.280 --> 0:24:41.200
<v Speaker 2>many of them have developed hoping mechanisms that will help

0:24:41.280 --> 0:24:45.160
<v Speaker 2>them self regulate, that will help them manage their behaviors

0:24:45.240 --> 0:24:48.640
<v Speaker 2>right which oftentimes to us neurotypical as folks that don't

0:24:48.640 --> 0:24:51.320
<v Speaker 2>have autism, it might look unusual. It might look odd

0:24:51.400 --> 0:24:54.919
<v Speaker 2>right because there's maybe hand flapping, there might be body rocking.

0:24:54.960 --> 0:24:57.120
<v Speaker 2>There could be a number of different things that's going on.

0:24:57.400 --> 0:24:59.959
<v Speaker 2>To the outside person or somebody who's not familiar with autism,

0:25:00.040 --> 0:25:02.320
<v Speaker 2>they'll think, wow, this looks really strange. These sorts of

0:25:02.359 --> 0:25:05.960
<v Speaker 2>things can be included on the registry. Also included on

0:25:06.000 --> 0:25:10.119
<v Speaker 2>the registry is whatever that person's special interest is, what

0:25:10.240 --> 0:25:14.200
<v Speaker 2>are the things that they like. This particular department in Canada,

0:25:14.320 --> 0:25:16.800
<v Speaker 2>when they were en route to this call, they received

0:25:16.800 --> 0:25:19.440
<v Speaker 2>the call on a young man with autism who had

0:25:19.480 --> 0:25:22.919
<v Speaker 2>barricaded himself in the basement of the family home with

0:25:23.000 --> 0:25:26.120
<v Speaker 2>a knife. No one else in the home but this

0:25:26.200 --> 0:25:30.959
<v Speaker 2>young man with a knife. So now these responding police

0:25:30.960 --> 0:25:34.200
<v Speaker 2>officers are going to this residence and they learn all

0:25:34.240 --> 0:25:37.240
<v Speaker 2>this about this young man with autism. Guess what else

0:25:37.240 --> 0:25:40.879
<v Speaker 2>they learned, Tony. They learn through this registry that his

0:25:41.000 --> 0:25:44.920
<v Speaker 2>special interest was ice hockey. So when the two first

0:25:44.960 --> 0:25:48.200
<v Speaker 2>responding units got there on the scene, they headed down

0:25:48.280 --> 0:25:51.399
<v Speaker 2>to the basement. But because of training, they know that

0:25:51.560 --> 0:25:54.199
<v Speaker 2>time and distance can help keep them alive, so they

0:25:54.320 --> 0:25:57.240
<v Speaker 2>kept a safe distance between themselves and this young man.

0:25:57.480 --> 0:25:59.520
<v Speaker 2>What do you think they started talking to him about

0:25:59.520 --> 0:26:02.359
<v Speaker 2>Tony and they arrived on the scene ice hockey? Why

0:26:02.720 --> 0:26:06.520
<v Speaker 2>because that's his special interest. So what happened They started

0:26:06.520 --> 0:26:10.359
<v Speaker 2>to build some repport with this young man by engaging

0:26:10.440 --> 0:26:15.240
<v Speaker 2>him in what was his special interest. After talking to

0:26:15.320 --> 0:26:18.680
<v Speaker 2>him for about fifteen to twenty minutes about ice hockey, right,

0:26:18.840 --> 0:26:21.840
<v Speaker 2>they said to him, Mike, we would love to talk

0:26:21.840 --> 0:26:24.160
<v Speaker 2>to you about ice hockey, but you've got to put

0:26:24.200 --> 0:26:26.919
<v Speaker 2>the knife down. And what do you think Mike did Tony?

0:26:27.160 --> 0:26:30.640
<v Speaker 2>He put the knife down. So now, Tony, let's be fair.

0:26:30.840 --> 0:26:33.760
<v Speaker 2>Is this going to work in every situation? No? Probably not,

0:26:34.119 --> 0:26:37.159
<v Speaker 2>but it can. And the reason why it worked in

0:26:37.240 --> 0:26:41.520
<v Speaker 2>this particular situation was because these officers had information. They

0:26:41.560 --> 0:26:44.439
<v Speaker 2>had knowledge about this person that helped them when they

0:26:44.520 --> 0:26:48.720
<v Speaker 2>arrived on the scene to de escalate a very volatile situation.

0:26:49.280 --> 0:26:51.800
<v Speaker 2>They had not received any training, they had not received

0:26:51.800 --> 0:26:55.520
<v Speaker 2>this information, things might have been handled much differently.

0:26:56.000 --> 0:27:00.480
<v Speaker 1>Absolutely, in closing, what do you feel is input that

0:27:00.560 --> 0:27:03.520
<v Speaker 1>the listeners here that needs to be covered in what

0:27:03.560 --> 0:27:03.880
<v Speaker 1>you do?

0:27:04.440 --> 0:27:06.920
<v Speaker 2>Let me just say this real quick to your listeners.

0:27:07.200 --> 0:27:11.680
<v Speaker 2>It is important that first responders receive training in how

0:27:11.680 --> 0:27:15.000
<v Speaker 2>to recognize and respond to autism. There's also a part

0:27:15.080 --> 0:27:17.440
<v Speaker 2>that I think sometimes we're missing, and that is this,

0:27:17.840 --> 0:27:21.879
<v Speaker 2>as parents, as caregivers and guardians, we need to prepare

0:27:21.920 --> 0:27:25.639
<v Speaker 2>our loved ones for interactions with law enforcement and with

0:27:25.760 --> 0:27:28.879
<v Speaker 2>other first responders. What does that mean? We need to

0:27:28.960 --> 0:27:32.960
<v Speaker 2>help provide them with some education and some training and

0:27:33.320 --> 0:27:38.200
<v Speaker 2>how to safely self disclose their autism to a first responder.

0:27:38.320 --> 0:27:41.000
<v Speaker 2>I'm a firm believer Tony that if a person with

0:27:41.080 --> 0:27:43.960
<v Speaker 2>autism at the onset of a contact with a law

0:27:44.000 --> 0:27:48.080
<v Speaker 2>enforcement officer, the chances of that interaction going well have

0:27:48.400 --> 0:27:51.960
<v Speaker 2>just increased substantially, even if the officers had zero training

0:27:51.960 --> 0:27:55.159
<v Speaker 2>and autism. If an officer approaches a my sign and

0:27:55.200 --> 0:27:57.919
<v Speaker 2>he says, hi, sir, what are you doing? And my

0:27:58.000 --> 0:28:01.399
<v Speaker 2>son says, officer, my name is Daniel and I have autism.

0:28:01.520 --> 0:28:03.960
<v Speaker 2>Can I show you my wallet card? The officer is

0:28:04.000 --> 0:28:05.960
<v Speaker 2>going to say sure, and then my son's going to

0:28:05.960 --> 0:28:07.719
<v Speaker 2>reach into his back pocket and he's going to take

0:28:07.760 --> 0:28:09.919
<v Speaker 2>out his wallet and there's a card that's in his

0:28:10.000 --> 0:28:14.080
<v Speaker 2>wallet that says my name is Daniel, and I have autism.

0:28:14.119 --> 0:28:17.439
<v Speaker 2>Inspectrum disorder, and when I get nervous or anxious, I

0:28:17.520 --> 0:28:20.720
<v Speaker 2>do the following things, and then it'll say things like

0:28:20.880 --> 0:28:23.920
<v Speaker 2>it'll be some strategies to help me better understand you,

0:28:23.960 --> 0:28:26.479
<v Speaker 2>please do the following. Then on the back of the

0:28:26.520 --> 0:28:30.680
<v Speaker 2>card is a mergency contact information that includes my name

0:28:30.720 --> 0:28:33.159
<v Speaker 2>and phone number, my wife's name and phone number, so

0:28:33.320 --> 0:28:36.200
<v Speaker 2>if law enforcement officers will reach out and contact us.

0:28:36.320 --> 0:28:38.880
<v Speaker 2>The wallet card is just one of many tools that

0:28:38.960 --> 0:28:42.880
<v Speaker 2>can help individuals with autism and help safely self disclose

0:28:42.920 --> 0:28:46.200
<v Speaker 2>their autism. They want to learn more about the wallet card,

0:28:46.480 --> 0:28:48.920
<v Speaker 2>they can go to the website for the wallet card.

0:28:49.240 --> 0:28:54.040
<v Speaker 2>It's www. Just Just or if you go to that website,

0:28:54.080 --> 0:28:56.520
<v Speaker 2>there is a link there on the page where the

0:28:56.600 --> 0:29:00.600
<v Speaker 2>pair and our caregiver can request a personalized wallet card

0:29:00.800 --> 0:29:02.960
<v Speaker 2>for their loved one. What I love about this is

0:29:03.080 --> 0:29:06.240
<v Speaker 2>each card can be personalized because autism is not a

0:29:06.360 --> 0:29:10.400
<v Speaker 2>one size fits all disability, so they can customize the

0:29:10.480 --> 0:29:13.200
<v Speaker 2>card to speak to whatever unique challenges and needs their

0:29:13.280 --> 0:29:16.160
<v Speaker 2>loved one has and include the emerency contact information on

0:29:16.200 --> 0:29:18.640
<v Speaker 2>the back. The wallet card is free. It doesn't cost

0:29:18.680 --> 0:29:20.840
<v Speaker 2>anybody of dying. I'm proud to say I've been a

0:29:20.880 --> 0:29:23.920
<v Speaker 2>part of that wallet card program now for over ten years.

0:29:24.080 --> 0:29:26.920
<v Speaker 2>It was a partnership between the University of Miami Centers

0:29:26.960 --> 0:29:30.560
<v Speaker 2>for Autism Related Disabilities, the Disability Independence Group, and the

0:29:30.600 --> 0:29:33.719
<v Speaker 2>Coral Gables Police Department. Think about that wallet card. If

0:29:33.760 --> 0:29:36.600
<v Speaker 2>there's one takeaway here today that you can take action

0:29:36.760 --> 0:29:39.600
<v Speaker 2>all and help your loved one on the spectrum, the

0:29:39.640 --> 0:29:41.760
<v Speaker 2>wallet card would be the one thing that I would

0:29:41.760 --> 0:29:42.680
<v Speaker 2>suggest that.

0:29:42.480 --> 0:29:45.680
<v Speaker 1>They get good. I appreciate you coming on, great conversation,

0:29:46.040 --> 0:29:47.200
<v Speaker 1>a lot of great information.

0:29:47.600 --> 0:29:49.480
<v Speaker 2>Thank you, Tony. It's been a pleasure, and I just

0:29:49.480 --> 0:29:51.200
<v Speaker 2>again i'll tell you thank you for what you do.

0:29:51.400 --> 0:29:54.640
<v Speaker 2>You provide a tremendous public service to this autism community,

0:29:54.640 --> 0:29:57.120
<v Speaker 2>and it's large and it's broad. Keep doing the great

0:29:57.120 --> 0:29:57.960
<v Speaker 2>work that you're doing.

0:29:58.200 --> 0:30:06.960
<v Speaker 1>I appreciate it. Thanks again. Thanks for taking the time

0:30:07.040 --> 0:30:09.680
<v Speaker 1>out of your busy schedule to listen to our show today.

0:30:10.960 --> 0:30:13.080
<v Speaker 1>We hope that you enjoyed it as much as we

0:30:13.200 --> 0:30:18.080
<v Speaker 1>enjoyed bringing it to you. If you know anyone that

0:30:18.120 --> 0:30:21.520
<v Speaker 1>would like to tell us their story, send them to

0:30:21.520 --> 0:30:26.520
<v Speaker 1>tonymantor dot com contact then they can give us their

0:30:26.560 --> 0:30:29.400
<v Speaker 1>information so one day they may be a guest on

0:30:29.440 --> 0:30:34.280
<v Speaker 1>our show. One more thing we ask tell everyone everywhere

0:30:35.560 --> 0:30:40.240
<v Speaker 1>about why not me, the world, the conversations we're having,

0:30:41.280 --> 0:30:45.520
<v Speaker 1>and the inspiration our guests give to everyone everywhere that

0:30:45.640 --> 0:30:47.719
<v Speaker 1>you are not alone in this world