IN 2016, OFFICERS SHOT BEHAVIORAL THERAPIST CHARLES
KINSEY IN NORTH MIAMI WHILE HE WAS TRYING TO GET HIS ADULT
AUTISTIC PATIENT OUT OF THE STREET.
THE PATIENT WAS PLAYING WITH A TOY.
MANY SAY THIS INCIDENT SHOWS HOW IMPORTANT IT IS FOR FIRST
RESPONDERS TO GET TRAINING ABOUT AUTISM AND HOW TO HANDLE THOSE
INDIVIDUALS DURING A CRISIS.
MORE THAN THREE MILLION AMERICANS ARE ON THE AUTISM
SPECTRUM-- IT'S THE FASTEST GROWING DEVELOPMENTAL
DISABILITY.
HERE TO SHARE MORE IS BAL HARBOUR MAYOR GABE GROYSMAN
AND BAL HARBOUR POLICE CHIEF RALEIGH FLOWERS.
THANK YOU BOTH FOR JOINING US, WE APPRECIATE THAT.
THANK YOU FOR HAVING US.
THE 2017 INCIDENT, THINK TAKE AWAYS?
WHAT DID WE LEARN AS FAR AS YOUR TEAM?
YOUR OFFICERS, AND OFFICERS STATEWIDE, WHAT CAN WE LEARN
FROM THAT?
THERE'S A GREAT TAKE AWAY FROM THAT INCIDENT.
LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS, WE NEED TO MAKE SURE WE KNOW HOW TO
DEAL WITH PEOPLE WHO SUFFER FROM AUTISM.
THIS IS AN IMPORTANT DISORDER THAT IS NOT DEFINED BY ONE
SPECIFIC ZIP CODE.
IT IS A BROAD INCIDENCE THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES.
AND WHAT WE HAVE TO DO IS WE GOT TO MAKE SURE OUR OFFICERS ARE
PREPARED, PROPERLY TRAINED.
WE HAVE TO INVEST IN OUR OFFICERS TO MAKE SURE THAT WHEN
THEY RESPOND TO THESE SORT OF CALLS, THEY ARE ABLE TO DETECT
AN INDIVIDUAL WHO MAY BE SUFFERING FROM AUTISM.
ON THE SCREENS, WE ARE LOOKING AT WHAT YOU ARE TAUGHT
TO HELP, GIVE THEM SPACE.
WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER IN A CRISIS SITUATION?
YOUR LINE OF QUESTIONING, IF YOU ASK AN INDIVIDUAL WITH
AUTISM, OR WHO HAS AN AUTISM DISORDER, IF YOU ASK THEM A
QUESTION AND THE WAY YOU PHRASE THAT QUESTION MIGHT ELICIT A
DIFFERENT RESPONSE.
NOT -- YOU WOULDN'T GET THE SAME RESPONSE THAT YOU WOULD GET FROM
A PERSON WHO DOESN'T HAVE AUTISM.
SO HOW YOU PHRASE A QUESTION IS VERY, VERY IMPORTANTLY IN
IDENTIFYING AN INDIVIDUAL WITH AUTISM AND GIVING THE
APPROPRIATE RESPONSE.
MAYOR, YOUR CITY AND YOUR POLICE DEPARTMENT HAS BEEN VERY
PROACTIVE IN EDUCATING OFFICERS.
WHY TAKE ON THIS ROLE AND HOW DID THIS OM -- COME ABOUT?
THIS IS SOMETHING THAT HAS COME ABOUT FM WE'RE BLESSED TO
HAVE HECTOR GONZALEZ, NOT JUST IN THE COMMUNITY BUT ACROSS THE
STATE, WE SAW A LITTLE BIT OF THE VIDEO IN THE INTRO HERE.
VERY INCLUSIVE COMMUNITY, SOUTH FLORIDA AND SO IS BAL HARBOUR.
THE GENERAL COMMUNITY NOT JUST THE LAW ENFORCEMENT COMMUNITY.
UNFORTUNATELY, YOU'RE SEEING HEADLINES FOR PERHAPS NOT SUCH
POSITIVE REASONS, IT RECENTLY CAME OUT THAT THERE WAS A FAMILY
WHO HAD RECEIVED A LETTER IN THE BAL HARBOUR AREA, A LETTER
THOUGHT FAMILY BECAUSE THEY HAD A TEENAGER WITH AUTISM, SAYING
THAT THEY WEREN'T WELCOME IN THE CONDO ANYMORE.
YOUR REACTION TO THAT?
AND WHAT YOU'RE DOING TO SORT OF EDUCATE OTHERS ON THIS ISSUE.
YES, ABOUT A MONTH AGO, ONE OF OUR RESIDENTS RECEIVED A
LETTER LIKE YOU SAID, UNDER THE DOOR, PURPORTING TO BE FROM
THEIR WHOLE BUILDING, REALLY A NASTY LETTER, TELGT THEM TO GET
OUT OF THE BUILDING BECAUSE THEIR DAUGHTER HAD AUTISM.
IT WAS HEARTBREAKING AS A FATHER OF FOUR GIRLS, AS A NEIGHBOR, AS
A MAYOR BUT THE RESPONSE IS SOMETHING I'M REALLY PROUD OF.
THE RESPONSE FROM THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY, NOT JUST THE
RESIDENTS BUT THE CITY AND THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, WAS STRONG
AND SWIFT RESPONSE, REJECTING AND REPUDIATING THAT TYPE OF
BEHAVIOR.
EVERYBODY FELLS THAT RESPONSE.
THOUSAND -- FELT THAT RESPONSE.
WHAT WE'RE DOING NEXT WEDNESDAY IN BAL HARBOUR HALL, WE'RE USING
THE TECHNIQUES OF HECTOR TO CREATE AN AUTISM EVENT.
IGNORANCE BREEDS HATE.
IF PEOPLE ARE EDUCATED AND LEARN HOW TO HANDLE AUTISM AND LEARN
HOW TO HANDLE AND INTERACT WITH PEOPLE WITH AUTISM, THEY WILL
UNDERSTAND AND COPE.
TURNING IT INTO SOMETHING THAT IS A NET POSITIVE.
TO BE FAIR TO THE FOLKS IN THE CONDOMINIUM, THEY CAME OUT
AND SAID THIS IS PROBABLY JUST AN INDIVIDUAL IF NOT, YOU KNOW
DOESN'T STAND FOR THE SENTIMENT OF THE WHOLE CONDO GROUP.
ABSOLUTELY.
CHIEF, WHAT IS THE ONE THING, THE ONE MISTAKE, THAT YOU HAVE
SEEN OTHER OFFICERS MAKE?
I KNOW YOU'RE REACHING OUT STATEWIDE TO EDUCATE OTHER
DEPARTMENTS.
WHAT IS THE ONE MISTAKE THAT YOU ARE REALLY TRYING TO WORK ON
WITH OFFICERS TO CHANGE WHEN IT COMES TO DEALING WITH
INDIVIDUALS WITH AUTISM?
WE REACHED OUT TO STATEWIDE, AS A MATTER OF FACT, I'M HAPPY
TO SAY THAT BAL HARBOUR IS ACTUALLY A LEADER STATEWIDE IN
EDUCATING PUBLIC SAFETY INDIVIDUALS, AND FIRST
RESPONDERS, ON AUTISM AWARENESS, AS THE MAYOR MENTION, OUR
DETECTIVE GONZALEZ TRAVELED THROUGHOUT THE STATE AND JUST
RECENTLY HE FACILITATED A TRAINING FOR MIAMI-DADE COUNTY
ASSOCIATION OF CHIEFS OF POLICE, I WAS SERVING IN THE CAPACITY OF
PRESIDENT OF THAT ASSOCIATION.
I THOUGHT IT WAS IMPORTANT THAT DETECTIVE GONZALEZ SHARE AS A
STUDENT IN HIS CLASSROOM, SHARE THAT AWARENESS TRAINING WITH THE
CHIEFS.
AND IF WE START WITH OUR CHIEFS, GETTING OUR CHIEFS TO UNDERSTAND
THE IMPORTANCE OF AUTISM AWARENESS, THE IMPORTANCE OF HOW
OFFICERS SHOULD RESPOND, HOW WE SHOULD INTERACT WITH INDIVIDUALS
WHO SUFFER AUTISM, THAT OUR OFFICERS WILL RESPOND
ACCORDINGLY.
NOW THEY'RE BETTER EDUCATEON HOW TO RESPOND AND IDENTIFY.
IT IS NOT EASY TO DPOM YOU'RE RESPONDING OWNERS -- TO DO.
YOU DON'T HAVE ANY INFORMATION ABOUT WHERE YOU'RE RESPONDING,
WHO YOU'RE RESPONDING TO.
WHAT ARE THE KEY THINGS?
EXPLAIN TO US FOR AN OFFICER, SOMEBODY WITH AUTISM MIGHT BE
CONFUSED WITH SOMEBODY ON DRUGS.
CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THAT?
WELL LIKE THERE ARE CERTAIN THINGS LIKE WHEN AN OFFICER
RESPONDS, THERE'S VERY LIMITED, SOMETIMES THERE'S VERY LIMITED
INFORMATION THAT THE OFFICER MAY RECEIVE FROM THE DISPATCHER
PRIOR TO ARRIVING AT THE CALL.
IF WE'RE AT A CALL AND WE SEE AN INDIVIDUAL THAT MAY, YOU KNOW,
USE THE EXAMPLE THAT YOU PROVIDED MAY BE DISPLAYING A
CERTAIN PART OF BEHAVIOR, AN AGGRESSIVE PAVER OR A CERTAIN
STARE, THE OFFICER MIGHT INTERPRET THIS, THE INDIVIDUAL
MAY BE UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF SOMETHING.
HOWEVER AFTER THE TRAINING THE OFFICER NOW CAN EXPAND HIS --
THE WAY THAT HE APPROACHES THIS CALL OR THE WAY THAT HE
INTERACTED WITH THIS INDIVIDUAL TO MAYBE DETERMINE OKAY, THE
PERSON MAY NOT BE UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF DRUGS BUT MAY BE
SUFFERING FROM SOME TYPE OF MENTAL DISABILITY SUCH AS
AUTISM.
MAYOR, I ASSUME THE REASON YOU'RE DING THIS, IT'S IMPORTANT
FOR ALL OF US TO GET EDUCATED ON THIS TOPIC.
ABSOLUTELY.
I SPENT THE MORNING WITH INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE AWE
ADVERTISEMENT IN THEIR BACKGROUND, I WANT TO SHARE THAT
WITH YOU AND WITH THE AUDIENCE, PEOPLE NEED TO LEARN THAT PEOPLE
WITH AUTISM, THEY FEEL, THEY HEAR, THEY UNDERSTAND AND MOST
OF THE PROBLEMS RELATE TO COMMUNICATION.
AND IT'S IMPORTANT WHEN YOU KNOW THAT YOU DEAL WITH PEOPLE WITH
AUTISM IN A COMPASSIONATE MANNER, IN A PATIENT MANNER AND
THAT YOU SHOW SUPPORT TO THE FAMILIES WHO ARE DEALING WITH
THE DILTS OF RAISING AND -- DIFFICULTIES OF RAISING AND
BEING WITH PEOPLE WITH AUTISM, THE GREAT PARTS, THE PEOPLE WITH
AUTISM SHARE IS A LOT OF LOAF AND EMOTION AND SPEAKING WITH
FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN WHO HAVE AUTISM, THIS MAYBE ON THE ONE
HAND MAY BE A DISABILITY BUT THIS PERSON KNOWS ONLY LOVE AND
HAPPINESS.
AND TO FEEL COMPASSION WITH THE COMMUNITIES, THE VIOLENCE IN THE
WORLD TODAY, IT'S GREAT IF WE CAN HELP TRY OTURN TIDE A LITTLE
BIT WITH PEOPLE BEING MORE COMPASSIONATE, BEING MORE
PATIENT AND OPEN WITH ONE ANOTHER WE'D ALL NORTHBOUND A
BETTER PLACE.
CHIEF REAL QUICK, ANYTHING YOU ARE DOING DIFFERENTLY OR YOU
SEE YOUR OFFICERS DOING DIFFERENTLY AFTER THE TRAINING?
OUR OFFICERS ARE MORE SENSITIVE, MORE COMPASSIONATE,
AND AFTER THE TRAINING ARE ABLE TO DETECT CERTAIN BEHAVIORS
WHICH ARE CONSISTENT WITH A INDIVIDUAL WITH AUTISM.
ONE STAY-AWAY THAT WE -- ONE TAKE-WAY E-AWAY THAT WE LEARNED
FROM THE INCIDENT AYOU MENTIONED EARLIER IS THAT THROUGH THESE
TRAININGS, WE CAN KIND OF AVOID AN INCIDENT LIKE THIS, WE CAN
PREVENT THOSE TYPE OF THINGS.
THANK YOU, CHIEF, WE APPRECIATE THIS.
NEXT WEEK'S AUTISM AWARENESS TRAINING TAKES PLACE AT THE BAL
HARBOUR VILLAGE HALL ON WEDNESDAY, MAY 30, BEGINNING AT
7 P.M.
THE TRAINING AND DISCUSSION IS FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.
WE'LL HAVE MORE DETAILS ON OUR FACEBOOK PAGE @YOURSOUTHFL.
DO YOU HAVE A COMMENT ABOUT AUTISM AWARENESS TRAINING OR ANY
OF THE TOPICS ON TODAY'S SHOW?
WE REALLY WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU.
SEND US YOUR THOUGHTS VIA EMAIL, OR GO TO OUR FACEBOOK PAGE,
@YOURSOUTHFL.
YOU CAN SEND US A VIDEO OR A MESSAGE ABOUT WHAT'S IMPACTING
YOU AND YOUR COMMUNITY.
WE LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING FROM YOU.