John Puls

And they'll actually respond in lieu of a law enforcement officer. Now, that's effective, but it's done on a very small scale. What I would recommend is that there's one thing for like a specialized CIT trained officer to respond.

And they'll actually respond in lieu of a law enforcement officer. Now, that's effective, but it's done on a very small scale. What I would recommend is that there's one thing for like a specialized CIT trained officer to respond.

And they'll actually respond in lieu of a law enforcement officer. Now, that's effective, but it's done on a very small scale. What I would recommend is that there's one thing for like a specialized CIT trained officer to respond.

It's a whole nother thing to have a fleet of officers that can receive some training at least and have some education because I have a neighbor who has something as autism and she has a lot of stickers on her car. That basically to inform anybody that could be approaching the car, police or whatever, that there is somebody with autism that's in the car and they may not respond appropriately.

It's a whole nother thing to have a fleet of officers that can receive some training at least and have some education because I have a neighbor who has something as autism and she has a lot of stickers on her car. That basically to inform anybody that could be approaching the car, police or whatever, that there is somebody with autism that's in the car and they may not respond appropriately.

It's a whole nother thing to have a fleet of officers that can receive some training at least and have some education because I have a neighbor who has something as autism and she has a lot of stickers on her car. That basically to inform anybody that could be approaching the car, police or whatever, that there is somebody with autism that's in the car and they may not respond appropriately.

They may make certain gestures that seem threatening, but aren't. Right. Just some basic training like that, I think, would be really helpful for law enforcement.

They may make certain gestures that seem threatening, but aren't. Right. Just some basic training like that, I think, would be really helpful for law enforcement.

They may make certain gestures that seem threatening, but aren't. Right. Just some basic training like that, I think, would be really helpful for law enforcement.

Listen, it's really difficult. I happen to know a few just because of the space that I'm in. But if I have a kid who has autism or some other type of severe mental health issue and winds up in the criminal justice system, I may panic and just Google defense attorneys and just start calling. And then before you know it, I'm sending a $5,000 retainer and I'm hoping for the best.

Listen, it's really difficult. I happen to know a few just because of the space that I'm in. But if I have a kid who has autism or some other type of severe mental health issue and winds up in the criminal justice system, I may panic and just Google defense attorneys and just start calling. And then before you know it, I'm sending a $5,000 retainer and I'm hoping for the best.

Listen, it's really difficult. I happen to know a few just because of the space that I'm in. But if I have a kid who has autism or some other type of severe mental health issue and winds up in the criminal justice system, I may panic and just Google defense attorneys and just start calling. And then before you know it, I'm sending a $5,000 retainer and I'm hoping for the best.

And that person may not have any understanding of it or Certain folks won't be able to do that, and then they're left to the public defender.

And that person may not have any understanding of it or Certain folks won't be able to do that, and then they're left to the public defender.

And that person may not have any understanding of it or Certain folks won't be able to do that, and then they're left to the public defender.

And what I see often happen in that case is that the person ends up sitting in jail for a considerably long period of time because they're not able to be bonded out, and it's very cumbersome and time-consuming to get a mitigation specialist to come in and advocate for reduced sentencing if that's needed. So it's very difficult, but I think...

And what I see often happen in that case is that the person ends up sitting in jail for a considerably long period of time because they're not able to be bonded out, and it's very cumbersome and time-consuming to get a mitigation specialist to come in and advocate for reduced sentencing if that's needed. So it's very difficult, but I think...

And what I see often happen in that case is that the person ends up sitting in jail for a considerably long period of time because they're not able to be bonded out, and it's very cumbersome and time-consuming to get a mitigation specialist to come in and advocate for reduced sentencing if that's needed. So it's very difficult, but I think...

Even though there's the imminent crisis, what I always try and tell families is to say, listen, yes, your loved one is in jail. This is terrible. But let's find some appropriate attorneys and legal representation. Grill them a little bit. Ask them, have you worked with clients who had autism before?

Even though there's the imminent crisis, what I always try and tell families is to say, listen, yes, your loved one is in jail. This is terrible. But let's find some appropriate attorneys and legal representation. Grill them a little bit. Ask them, have you worked with clients who had autism before?