ASET - Autism Safety Education & Training

10/26/2018

I was honored to have a police officer from Scotland visit to learn more about the autism training I do here in Maine. Her report is below. Please take a minute or two to check it out.

It was wonderful to meet a colleague from so far away and realize how similar the issues and challenges are.

Thank you for visiting my blog, where I’ll be detailing my travel and experiences for my 2018 Churchill Fellowship. I’m visiting the USA, Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands to look at how police o…

06/12/2018

Last evening, thanks to a grant from Autism Law Enforcement Coalition (ALEC) and Bill Cannata, I was able to provide autism training to the good folks at the Gray Fire-Rescue, and Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office.

We discussed responding to emergencies- fire, rescue, EMS and law enforcement- involving individuals on the autism spectrum. Thanks to Capt. Peter Holmquist and ALEC.

05/01/2018

Thanks to Bill Cannata and ALEC (autism law enforcement coalition) I was able to present an Autism Safety training for first responders to Falmouth ME Fire/Rescue and Falmouth PD tonight at Falmouth F/R headquarters

04/13/2018

Returned yesterday from a quick trip to Dallas-Ft. Worth. Trained dispatchers from 7 different departments in the Dallas and Ft. Worth areas.

The dispatchers reported an uptick in calls involving persons w autism, but indicated this was the first training they had ever received on the topic.

We focused on the critical information to solicit from callers and to relay to first responders- particularly around wandering incidents and responses to meltdown. We also discussed the importance of specific dispatch protocols related to such calls, voluntary registration programs and of creating opportunities for first responders to meet and interact w the autism community.

I am hopeful that the agencies will enact some of these recommendations!

04/03/2018

ASET has been busy, so I figured it was time for an update.

March 27th, I presented to the Wells-Ogunquit community in southern Maine We had over 75 attendees from both school districts, as well as police officers from Wells, Ogunquit and S**o, EMS personnel from Wells Rescue, as well as parents and case managers. We discussed safety issues for persons w autism in school and in the community.

On April 11th, I travel to Dallas, TX to do 4 separate 2 hr trainings for 911 dispatchers.

On April 30th, in partnership w my friend Bill Cannata, and a grant he received through his wonderful organization, Autism and Law Enforcement Coalition (ALEC) I will be presenting to the Falmouth, ME fire/rescue department, along w their police department, and plans are in the works for a similar training for the fire/rescue folks in Gray, ME as well.

My training schedule in partnership with the Autism Society of Maine has also been quite busy. I trained personnel from Maine parks preparing for summer camp, the US Border Patrol at their duty station in Washington County, ME, and also presented to members and staff of the Capital Clubhouse in Augusta, crisis response workers at Opportunity Alliance in Portland. Upcoming trainings include Bridgton and Fryeburg Police, and the Maine Criminal Justice Academy.

And I continue to pursue interest in the Developmental Disability and Autism Response Team in Maine- stay tuned for news on that front as we move forward.

Thank you all for your interest and support!!

01/20/2018

Trained a class of EMT’s in Lewiston this week, and excited that we have a trip planned to Dallas, TX in April to train 4 shifts of dispatchers.

BIG NEWS: Just learned this week that we got a small grant from the Maine Developmental Disabilities Council, in partnership w the Autism Society of Maine, to see if we can find 2 counties in Maine interested in developing a DART ( Developmental Disabilities Response Team). This is a concept I developed about 10 yrs. ago in response to the ever-increasing number of persons w autism that are finding themselves involved in the criminal justice system.

The idea is to train a team- including a judge, prosecutor, defense attorneys, probation officer, investigator, victim-witness advocate and corrections officer, that would be assigned cases in which persons w developmental disabilities are a victim, witness or defendant. Hoping we can find some areas willing to take part.

Each and every week, I work w families
with children or adults w autism who have found themselves involved in the criminal justice system. And it is painfully obvious that the system is ill-equipped to handle these cases in a just manner. I am hopeful we can change that soon.

12/15/2017

On 12/5, I conducted a training for CIT officers in Hancock County, ME. Daigan Small, a young man w Autism, came and shared his experiences and answered officer's questions. He did an amazing job!

On 12/13, I conducted a training for the BLETP (Basic Law Enforcement Training Program) at the Maine Criminal Justice Academy. 53 cadets from all over the state of Maine, who graduated today, were in the class. I have had the privilege of providing the Autism training here to the cadet classes since 2005.

I also continue working w families w a family member with ASD that has come into contact with the criminal justice system, with the support of the Autism Society of Maine.

Merry Christmas everyone!

11/11/2017

I had the honor of meeting Vicki Gibbs from Sydney, Australia this week. She came all the way to the U.S. to learn about how we train law enforcement officers here on Autism and Safety. Bill Cannata, who has trained thousands of first responders through ALEC (Autism & Law Enforcement Education Coalition) hosted Vicki, and they both came up to Maine to learn about our program here.

It was exciting to pass on what I have learned over the past 15 yrs or so, and I hope Vicki took things from Bill and I that will assist in her efforts to train law enforcement in Australia. Thank you to Bill, I enjoy so much our collaborations, and Vicki Gibbs safe travels back down under. I look forward to collaborating more in the future!

11/05/2017

Had a great day yesterday at the 2017 Autism Society of Maine Annual Conference in Orono. Did a presentation for about 50 parents and other family members, as well as educators and case managers.
We focused on strategies to prevent dangerous situations involving our loved
Ones with Autism- wandering, meltdowns, bullying/manipulation by peers, fire safety and safety when interacting with the police.

We also spoke at length about the growing issue of young adults with Autism finding themselves in the Court system, where a lack of education and training is leading to unjust resolutions, and often lengthy jail terms.

Lastly, we discussed implementation of proactive programs to provide more opportunities for our loved ones with Autism to interact with police and other first responders.

Was an honor to be a part of this great event!

10/31/2017

Was a pretty rough day up here in Maine, but the training goes on!

Trained a great group of paramedics and EMT's from Northstar Ambulance, as well as firefighters from Farmington, Strong and Livermore Falls Fire Departments, and several dispatchers.

Thanks for hanging in there after a long day!

10/28/2017

Had a great night Thursday, conducting a community training hosted by the area autism parent support group. About 30 Parents, school bus drivers, 2 police chiefs from NH and ME, several officers and firefighters and a superior court judge attended.

We spoke a lot about the issue of individuals w autism caught in the criminal justice system. Increasingly, persons w ASD find themselves facing criminal charges, forced into a court system that is completely uneducated on the challenges faced by this population.

It was an honor to come to NH and share our concerns with one another.

08/30/2017

Been plenty busy conducting Autism trainings for Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training
Classes of police officers from across the state of Maine in my role as CIT director for Nami

Upcoming trainings include:

9/4/17 US Border Patrol
9/12/17 Penobscot Co CIT
10/17/17 Lincoln Co CIT
10/30/17 Northstar Ambulance
11/4/17 Autism Society conference
11/14/17 York Co. CIT
12/5/17 Hancock Co CIT
12/13/17 Maine Crim. Justice Academy cadet class