Franklin County Public Safety Training Center
3075 Molly Pitcher Highway
Chambersburg, PA 17202
Critical to the establishment of safe environments for a child with autism rests squarely upon the appropriate understanding of the child’s needs by the very individuals providing care and assistance to the child. The behaviors of these children that make them unique can also serve to place them in harm’s way. Parents, guardians, teachers, medical professionals, and other disciplines interacting with the children daily or otherwise, must be professionally trained to establish that level of understanding.
Reports of missing children with special needs (regardless of diagnosis) require a multidisciplinary response that must be treated critically. Time is of the essence. The actions of the first responders are vital to the safe recovery of these children. Conversely, a lack of response protocols and/or timeliness of that response may very well turn into a body recovery effort.
Therefore, law enforcement professionals and ancillary disciplines tasked with the responsibility to safely recover missing children with autism must understand the behavior of these persons. The development of the necessary response protocols must be based upon those unique behaviors.
This course will provide the participant with an understanding of those behaviors, the special response protocols, containment measures and recovery and reunification issues surrounding these persons.
The following topics will be covered to enhance the participants’ understanding:
Autism Spectrum Disorder –
A platform from which to identify developmental disorders that directly affect how a child with autism will interact with others in reference to communicating and other manners of behaving.
Understanding the Unique Patterns of Behavior –
Children with autism can exhibit patterns of behavior that once understood by the professional, can assist that professional in their interactions with the child and to assist in the development and implementation of safety measures to ensure the child can function within a safe environment.
Prevalence of Missing Persons with Autism –
Longstanding, children with autism can exhibit more than one disorder. Moreover, some disorders prevail more often than others. How the child acts or reacts within their environment is exacerbated by the comorbid conditions. Professionals must be cognizant of this as they interact with the child.
Embracing the Issues by All Concerned –
Consideration must be given to the fact that children with autism can and do function within society every day. This fact alone places these children in multiple environments with different people. Therefore, for measures instituted to be most effective, society must come together in an embracing unified effort to provide for these children.
Creating an Environment of Safety –
Efforts to determine levels of risk to those children with autism coming into harms way within their daily walk-in life must be conducted to mitigate the risks associated with that walk. Buildings, streets, streams, lakes, ponds, highways, etcetera must be considered in the risk assessment process.
Immediate Life Saving Efforts and Containment Protocols –
Incidents in which a child with autism goes missing must be treated critically as these episodes can be lethal. Therefore, immediate lifesaving protocols must be in place beforehand to mitigate this risk. Part of those protocols will require measures to try and contain the missing child from getting into a potentially lethal situation.
Special Response Protocols –
The unique behaviors associated with children with Autism demands a different response from normal established response protocols. A multidisciplinary team is vital to that effort. Identification of the various disciplines that will make up that response team must be developed beforehand to enhance a successful recovery of the child.
Investigative Measures and Search and Rescue Measures –
Those incidents pertaining to a child who goes missing with autism will require a police investigative response. Additionally, a search and rescue response will also be required. Police investigative measures and search and rescue measures are not the same and must be clearly delineated by those disciplines fulfilling those responsibilities. This is vital to a successful recovery.
Coordination of Resources –
To enhance the probability of a successful safe recovery of the missing child, professionals must come together in a collaborative and ongoing cooperative manner and effort. Coalescing the respective resources from each discipline will be required.
Recovery and Reunification Issues –
Recovery and reunification measures pertaining to a missing child incident are distinct and different in design and purpose. Recovery pertains to the physical wellbeing of the child and reunification pertains to the mental health wellbeing of the child. Protocols for each issue must be developed and incorporated into the Investigative measures and search and rescue measures.
Embracing the Challenge and Implementation of Change –
A true measure of the efforts designed to create a safe atmosphere for our children who have autism, is a practical application. From table-top exercises to the execution of missing child drills provides the means to identify our strengths and weaknesses surrounding missing child episodes. Through this application, professionals can embrace challenging issues and effect change when change is necessary.
Dissemination of Best Practices –
The culmination of efforts set forth in this course of instruction will establish best practices. The dissemination of those best practices by the very professionals in the room will have a positive effect beyond the venue itself. In short, the efforts of some will affect the efforts of many. The result is that another child is safely recovered. This cannot be over-emphasized.
Instructor – Wayne Sheppard
Mr. Sheppard provides assistance and case consultations on criminal investigations on a national and international basis. The specialized aid encompasses case reviews, case assessments, behavioral analysis of violent crime, development of victimology, victim and offender risk assessments, criminal case management, developing behaviorally based interviewing techniques and strategies, the application of offender typologies, etcetera aimed at enhancing solvability factors and case resolution. Additionally, Mr. Sheppard supplies consultations in threat assessments for persons and facilities subject to violent criminal behavior. Moreover, Mr. Sheppard supplies consultative services for the prosecution and defense teams in the preparation and litigation of criminal cases.
Mr. Sheppard is a national and international lecturer and trainer for numerous disciplines. He provides training and lecturing on: violent crime and death investigations, violent crime analysis, crime scene assessments, offender dichotomies and typologies, case management, missing and abducted children incidents, missing children with special needs, the design and implementation of law enforcement agencies policies and procedures on violent crime, the development of child abduction regional response plans and other efforts aimed at enhancing an entity’s overall response to violent crime. Furthermore, Mr. Sheppard has conducted research in the areas of violent crime to include serial homicides, child homicides and child abductions.
Mr. Sheppard is a retired member of the Pennsylvania State Police where he held a number of investigative and supervisory positions. As the supervisor of the Criminal Investigation Assessment (CIA) Unit, he was responsible for the investigation and coordination of psychosexual homicide, serial rape, and other behaviorally based crimes occurring in Pennsylvania. In this capacity, he created and implemented the Pennsylvania State Police Basic Homicide course and the Criminal Investigation for Supervisors course of instruction. Additionally, Mr. Sheppard structured and facilitated criminal case assessment reviews for local and state law enforcement in the state of Pennsylvania as well as for other law enforcement agencies across the United States. Moreover, as the supervisor of the CIA Unit, Mr. Sheppard administered the Violent Criminal Apprehension Program (ViCAP) in conjunction with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Mr. Sheppard was instrumental in the creation of the Northeast Regional ViCAP Association in which he worked with other states and the FBI to change the (ViCAP) data collection protocols to include the collection and analysis of sexual assault information in the linking and tracking of violent criminals. Contemporaneous with his responsibilities for the Criminal Investigative
Assessment Unit, Mr. Sheppard was responsible for the supervision of the Pennsylvania State Police Missing Persons Unit. In this capacity, he provided investigative assistance for law enforcement in missing, abducted and sexually exploited children cases. Additionally, Mr. Sheppard set up standard operating procedures and in-depth uniform instructions pertaining to the methodology for conducting comprehensive missing person investigations. Due to his work in that area, Mr. Sheppard was also asked to serve as the Clearinghouse Manager to mediate between the Pennsylvania State Police and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) in matters on child maltreatment issues. Additionally, Mr. Sheppard provided consultative work for the United States Justice Department and NCMEC on the creation and implementation of various training programs addressing missing and abducted children incidents.
Mr. Sheppard is the creator of the Pennsylvania AMBER Alert Program which uses the Emergency Alert System to broadcast critical information about child abductions to the viewing and listening public of Pennsylvania. Additionally, Mr. Sheppard was instrumental in working with the Pennsylvania Lottery Commission to use the Commission’s various ticketing systems to further disseminate AMBER alert information. Furthermore, Mr. Sheppard worked closely with the CTIA – The Wireless Association in Washington D.C. to create and beta test new computer technology to disseminate AMBER alert information for the United States.
Due to his pioneering work in the creation of the Pennsylvania AMBER Alert Program, Mr. Sheppard was one of three people selected to serve as an advisor on the then newly created National Amber Advisory Work Group. The Group was formed by the President George W. Bush Administration in Washington, D.C. During the Bush Administration, President George W. Bush requested the Group create a seamless environment and set up the connectivity between each developing AMBER Alert program in the United States. With this direction, the Work Group helped in the creation, development, and implementation of AMBER Alert programs across the United States.
During his career with the Pennsylvania State Police, Mr. Sheppard also served on the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Legal/Medical Advisory Board on Elder Abuse in which he provides case consultations on elder abuse incidents occurring in Pennsylvania.
After his retirement from the Pennsylvania State Police, Mr. Sheppard held the position as the Associate Director of Training and Outreach for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). Mr. Sheppard oversaw the facilitation of training and outreach programs designed to enhance law enforcement efforts in the investigation of missing, abducted, and exploited children. In this role, Mr. Sheppard has co-authored numerous professional publications and training manuals designed to enhance law enforcement’s response to missing and abducted children’s incidents. Additionally, Mr. Sheppard was responsible for the Team Adam Program for NCMEC, a program designed as an on-site response and support system that provides investigative and technical
assistance to law enforcement agencies in cases of missing children incidents, child abduction incidents and child sexual victimization incidents. Moreover, to ensure the critical collaboration and on-going cooperation is maintained pertaining to missing and exploitation of children issues, Mr. Sheppard served as the NCMEC liaison for Child Abduction Response Teams (CART) and the National Clearinghouses established across the United States.
Mr. Sheppard has researched and co-authored NCMEC publications on law enforcement’s response to missing children with special needs and provides on-going training and lectures in those matters for the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Mr. Sheppard has addressed professionals representing the disciplines of law enforcement, corrections, social work, probation and parole, medicine, law, television, radio, and academia on a national and international basis.
Mr. Sheppard has provided expert testimony in matters pertaining to violent crime and missing and exploited children issues before the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
Mr. Sheppard is the recipient of numerous awards both nationally and internationally for his support and expertise in violent crime, child exploitation investigations, and child abduction response plans.
Mr. Sheppard is a member of the Vidocq Society, a group comprised of experts from various disciplines across the country that provide pro bono services in the investigation and analysis of unsolved violent crimes occurring in the United States.
Mr. Sheppard served as a board member of the Pennsylvania State Emergency Communications Committee where he aided in matters related to the interoperability of the Pennsylvania Emergency Alert System and the Pennsylvania Amber Alert Plan for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Mr. Sheppard is the past Vice-President of the Pennsylvania Homicide Investigators Association, past member of the Pennsylvania State Emergency Management Agency, past Board member of the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Legal/Medical Advisory Board on Elder Abuse and member of the Virginia Homicide Investigators Association.
Mr. Sheppard is a past board member of the Public Agency Training Foundation Board of Directors.
Missing Children With Special Needs – Course Outline
About Sheppard Consulting, LLC
Missing Children With Autism – Training Announcement