Belton, Texas — Through a workshop program born out of one mother's crisis, Bell County first responders are learning new techniques to recognize and de-escalate situations involving people with disabilities — and for families with children who have autism, the training is helping change outcomes.
In 2015, Anne Jackson was facing a crisis. Her autistic son was acting erratically, and she needed help but was scared to reach out to first responders out of fear it would escalate a dire situation.
"He ran away from home or was engaging in behavior that alarmed me, and I called 911 as I was talking on the phone to dispatch. I realized I've created a situation where I've asked police to help and they might not understand autism and what have I done?" Jackson said.
As an attorney, she realized this moment reflected a larger-scale problem. Along with other advocates and parents, she developed a workshop program she wished she had then — BAIT, the Bell County Autism Intervention Team.
For 10 years, the program has taught juvenile protection workers, the judicial system, disability advocates and law enforcement.
Bell County law enforcement has integrated the training along with Autism Sensory Kits, known as ASK, to help kids and families in crisis.
"They'll come in and just say, 'Hey, due to some of these training techniques that we've learned, we were able to recognize that he was overstimulated and he wasn't aggressive, but we were able to get him out of that situation and de-escalate,'" said Corp. Adam Miner, a mental health supervisor with the Bell County Sheriff's Office.
The goal is to give first responders the tools to recognize warning signs before a situation escalates.
"A lot of people don't understand the signs and what they're looking for and what this, what this will help do is just lower those interactions down to a more calm level to avoid someone getting possibly hurt in this situation," said Jarred Demontigny, Mental Health Co-Responder of the Killeen Police Department.
For Jackson, the best part is that it's now a family venture. Her son — her inspiration — is now part of the journey to help others.
"I'm just brought along as like someone who can just talk about what it's like being on the spectrum and also like all the struggles I've been through growing up," said "Tres" Michael Jackson, a registered behavioral tech and autism ambassador.
Together, Anne and Michael Jackson have taught more than 5,000 people in the state so that no one has to face what she did that day.
Organizers tell me they hope the program helps shape how first responders handle and manage these situations in Belton.
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