Maricopa Police Department members recently completed a new autism awareness training designed to help first responders better understand communication differences and signs of sensory overload during calls for service, according to InMaricopa.
The training was provided by Arizona nonprofit Preston’s Pursuit for Acceptance. It reinforces a “tactical pause,” a concept that asks officers to briefly consider whether a person’s behavior may be connected to autism or another developmental disability before deciding how to respond.
Chris Timmins, co-founder of Preston’s Pursuit for Acceptance, said in a video posted by MPD that the program was created by first responders for first responders. He said the goal is to help officers quickly determine whether they are seeing an impairment or something else.
The training comes as research shows people with autism are more likely than the general population to have contact with law enforcement. According to the Autism Society, about 1 in 5 young adults with autism will interact with a police officer before age 21, and other research has found they are seven times more likely to encounter police.
Maricopa Police Chief Mark Goodman said the department’s goal is to improve communication and, in turn, improve outcomes for community members. He said officers benefit from understanding some of the things people may be experiencing before police make contact.
