By R.V. Kuser, Advocate and Author

R.V. Kuser, Officer Michael Coleman and Philip WoodwardFirst, I would like to introduce myself. My name is R.V. Kuser, and I am proud to be living with Autism. Having autism is not what defines me. I spent my life learning about my challenges and using the challenges to become my strengths. By knowing myself, I then in turn, try to help others understand their personal journeys.

I attended my first National ADA Symposium last month in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was put together very well. I was impressed by how many sessions there were – at least 100 or more!

One of the sessions I attended was titled Autism and Law Enforcement presented by Officer Michael Coleman, who serves as Officer and Field Training Supervisor for the City of Henderson (Nevada) Police Department and who has a son with autism. I volunteered to be a presenter assistant, and, to my surprise, this was the session that I was assigned to help out with. This was the session I was really looking forward to attending! I had made the point to explain to Michael Coleman that I am a person living with autism. I also told him that a police R.V. Kuser Speaks at Autism & Law Enforcement Session 1officer's electronic equipment can become overstimulating for me and possibly for other people with autism. The session started with an overview of the nature of autism. The next segments were research and therapies for autism. He also discussed behaviors and characteristics of people on the autism spectrum, and that generated the next topic of autism-related police contacts and police response tips. Since I am on the autism spectrum, it takes me longer to organize and process new information. Michael has an understanding of how people on the spectrum learn. He was clear, concise and to the point.Autism and Law Enforcement Police and Fire Contacts Slide

My goal is to help create an educational program that will foster a better understanding of the interactions between a police department and the autism community. This educational program will focus on the perspective of the police and what they need to do, but also to convey to the police the complexities of a person who has autism or another kind of mental disability.

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please don't hesitate to contact me through my website kusertalk.com or email me at [email protected].

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