A Police Officer's Guide for Working with People with Mental Retardation and Achieving Positive Outcome

Some organizations that might prove helpful when you encounter someone with mental retardation in our community include:

The Arc of Midland 631-4439

Community Mental Health for Central Michigan 631-9959

This material is intended to be just an overview. Additional training is available on mental retardation through The Arc of Midland.

About three out of every 100 people have mental retardation, so it is likely that you will come into contact with a person who has this disability. A successful interaction with a person who has mental retardation can yield accurate and useful information while, at the same time, protecting his or her rights as an individual.

State and federal laws prohibit discrimination against people with disabilities and require that government programs, services, and activities be accessible to these individuals.

The goal of this brochure is to help police officers achieve positive outcomes when working with people who have the disability of mental retardation.

What is mental retardation?

People with mental retardation have difficulty in learning, but the effects of this condition can vary greatly from person to person.

Why is mental retardation sometimes harder to detect than other disabilities?

Some people with mental retardation may try to hide their disability in order to be liked or accepted by others — especially by authority figures.

What is the difference between mental retardation and mental illness?

Mental retardation refers to below average intellectual functioning and abilities to learn and process information.

Mental illness has nothing to do with intelligence. It refers to disturbances in thought processes, emotions and behaviors.

Mental retardation generally occurs before a person reaches adulthood.

Mental illness can occur at any time in a person's life.

How can I tell if someone has mental retardation?

Although there is no sure sign that a person has mental retardation, there are traits that may indicate some level of retardation. A person exhibiting these traits may not necessarily have mental retardation. If there is any question, however, it is best to assume he or she does.

Following is a list of traits you might observe when talking with an individual who has mental retardation.

Communication-the person may have

• Limited vocabulary or speech impairment
• Difficulty understanding or answering questions
• A short attention span

Behavior-the person may

• Act inappropriately with peers or the opposite sex
• Be easily influenced and unusually eager to please others
• Be easily frustrated
• Have difficulty giving accurate directions, making change, using the telephone or telephone book, telling time, reading and writing, and/or answering questions quickly and clearly.

During police contact, the person may

• Not want the disability to be noticed
• Not understand his or her rights
• Not understand commands
• Act overwhelmed by police presence, act very upset at being detained, and/or try to run away
• Say what others want to hear
• Have difficulty describing facts or details
• Be last to leave the scene of a crime and first to get caught
• Be confused about who is responsible and "confess" even though innocent

How do I talk to someone who has mental retardation?

Here are a few helpful techniques when trying to communicate with people who have mental retardation or similar disabilities, such as head injuries, learning disabilities, or Alzheimer's disease.

Remember to...

• Speak directly to the person
• Keep sentences short
• Use simple language
• Speak slowly and clearly
• Ask for concrete descriptions (colors, clothing, etc.)
• Whenever possible, use pictures, symbols, and actions to help convey meaning.

Be patient...

• Take time when giving and asking for information
• Avoid confusing questions about reasons for behavior
• Repeat or rephrase questions
• Use calm, firm persistence
• Don't ask leading questions
• Ask open-ended questions

Keep in mind that people with mental retardation

• Are not necessarily incapable of understanding or communicating
• Should not be treated as children if they are adults
• Are entitled to the same respect you would give any person.

How do I protect the individual's rights?

When you think a person you are interviewing, questioning, or interrogating may have mental retardation, it's a good idea to have a guardian, lawyer, or support person present. The individual may not understand Miranda warnings even if they say they do and they usually want to please police officers and may appear to incriminate themselves, even when they are innocent.

You can check for understanding by asking the person to repeat each phrase in his or her own words and/or asking questions about the content. You may want to videotape the interview and make sure your questions are clear, distinct, open-ended, and non-leading. If you believe the person has mental retardation, let the individual's attorney know.

What options are available other than jail, especially when the individual has not committed a crime?

• Contact a parent or guardian
• Take the person home
• Contact an agency on mental retardation
• Contact an advisor or expert familiar with the individual or with people who have this disability.