Peoria police receive autism training to enhance officer sensitivity
PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — April is World Autism Awareness Month, and the Peoria Police Department using that to train officers on how to respond with sensitivity to people on the spectrum.
New program from Peoria County Sherriff's department to help support people with Autism
Police Chief Eric Echevarria has understood the behaviors associated with someone who is autistic long before he put on the badge.
'I grew up with a brother who is autistic,' he said. 'I see things in my life through him that prepared me as a police officer.'
Commemorating the month, officers will be trained through the Autism Hero Project, an organization that is dedicated to 'drive the paradigm shift towards autism acceptance, influence positive changes in public policy, and transform the landscape of how businesses embrace diversity.'
'We want to understand that from the beginning,' the chief said about the upcoming training, 'Not necessarily at the end of a call where we've talked to somebody for a while because the officer may not be trained to understand it.
'The sooner we understand it, the sooner we can adapt to figuring out what we need to do to de-escalate and bring them down, bring in the proper person to talk to them, etc,' he added.
The department has stickers on hand that people can put on the back of their cars, on the front of their doors or anywhere police would see it, which gives the officers the chance to shift their focus to understanding how to respond.
Peoria Police Department handing out stickers for Autism Awareness Month
Along with the stickers, a blue envelope is given out for someone who is austistic and drives. Inside the envelope would contain a photocopy of the person's driver's license, current vehicle registration and proof of insurance.
The envelope also has instructions on what someone on the spectrum can expect during a traffic stop, including procedure to give the officer the envelope itself. On the back, it gives instructions for the officer on how to respond.
'This is for both ways, for us to be able to communicate better and to help the person that we just may need to educate them. 'Hey, you did this when you were driving,' and that's all it is,' Echevarria said, holding up the envelope. 'They may deal with that differently, and so we want to be aware of that, and we want them to be safe.'
The department has already partnered with Trillium Place offering a co-response unit to help in de-escalation.
An autism awareness event will be held on April 26 at the building that houses the co-response unit where sensory kits will be handed out. These kits will now be in all of the squad cars.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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