Maddie Franz at WQAD-TV:
Illinois law enforcement will soon be trained on how to interact with people with autism. That's thanks to a law that went into effect on Jan. 1.
According to the Autism Society, between 30% and 50% of all people killed by police have autism or other disabilities. It also estimates 20% of autistic kids have been stopped and questioned by age 21 — almost 5% have been arrested.
Eric Sommers, president of the Autism Society of the Quad Cities, said that's something the law could help.
"If you've met one person with autism, you've met one person with autism," Sommers said.
Every person on the autism spectrum is different. Some struggle to communicate with others, some panic in intense situations and others can't speak.
"All those situations could impact an interaction with law enforcement or first responders," Sommers said.
He said those difficulties can result in violent outcomes during police interactions.
"Large amounts of force have been used against autistic individuals when they were not able to comply because they either didn’t understand the directions given to them or couldn’t react in what would be an appropriate manner," Sommers said. "There’s a lot that falls on the individual in those situations to react in the appropriate way, but when certain things are preventing those communications from taking place, it’s hard in that moment to capture that."
But with the new Illinois law, Sommers hopes those outcomes will be less common.
He said the training can build trust in the autism community and give police the tools they need.
