08-02-2025
Chemung Co. Sheriff's Office adopts Blue Envelope Program
ELMIRA, N.Y. (WETM) – The Chemung County Sheriff's Office is now adopting the Blue Envelope Program, which helps drivers with autism.
'There are many adult drivers who are living with autism. A driver's physical movements or verbal responses which would normally be appropriate during a traffic stop may be beyond an autistic driver's control. Around the country, there have been some unfortunate incidents where, during a traffic stop of a person with autism, the officer has misinterpreted the driver's movements, or driver's failure to appropriately respond to requests or to directions. This has sometimes led to an escalation of the situation and resulted in a bad outcome,' said Chemung County Sheriff Bill Schrom.
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According to a news release, law enforcement agencies across the country are encouraging drivers with autism to get a Blue Envelope. Drivers can keep things like their license, registration, insurance card or other relevant documents in it. A police officer would normally request these during a traffic stop. This way, when the police officer sees the Blue Envelope, the officer is immediately alerted to the driver's autism and can adjust his or her own actions and reactions to fit the situation.
'They might be making repetitive movements that wouldn't be normal that would heighten the officer up that there's something wrong there. Well, this blue envelope could say well there's a reason for those movements. So, that may de-escalate the situation and it's all about keeping the public as well as the officer safe,' said Undersheriff Houper.
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The officer can then immediately understand how to best deal with the situation.
'It also teaches the driver with autism that 'Hey, there are certain things that the police officer are going to do or act,' just so they'll be aware. Like, at night time they might shine a flashlight into your car to see if there's anyone else in there. That's not a big deal. We have plenty to give out to anybody in the community that has autism that is a driver and again it's just to tell people that without telling us what you have, this blue envelope will identify you as somebody that has autism that may show signs that we're not used to in law enforcement,' said Undersheriff Houper.
For more information on how to get a Blue Envelope, call The Chemung County Sheriff's Office Administrative Office Phone number at (607) 737-2987.
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