Interviewing Victims with Disabilities

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Interviewing Victims with Disabilities

• Roberta Sick
• Crime Victims with Disabilities Project
• Partners for Inclusive Communities

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LAW ENFORCEMENT Focus Group

• Types of Disabilities
• Communication - effectively communicating with
  someone with a disability
• Resources

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Things to Consider the Challenges

• Importance of getting good information
• Delayed Reporting
• Inconsistencies

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VIOLENCE AND PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

• Persons with disabilities are - 4 to 10 times
  -more likely to become a victim of violence,
  abuse, or neglect than persons without
  disabilities (Petersilia 2001).
• Children with disabilities are more than twice as
  likely to be physically or sexually abused as
  children without disabilities (Petersilia 2001
  Sobsey and Mansell 1994).

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VIOLENCE AND PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

• Numerous studies indicate that the risk of
  criminal victimization of a person with a
  disability is much higher than for people without
  disabilities.
• Additional research in this area needs to be done
  to further examine incidence rates

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DEFINING DISABILITY

• Visible-obvious disabilities
• Cerebral palsy
• Spinal cord injury
• Blindness
• Down syndrome
• Loss of a limb

• Invisible-not always obvious
• Learning disabilities
• Mental health issues (mental illness)
• Autism
• Seizure disorder
• Language disorder

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DEFINING DISABILITY

• In the United States, one out of five people
• In Arkansas, an estimated 22 of the adult
  population has a disability.
• These disabilities come in many forms, physical,
  cognitive, psychiatric, sensory, or
  developmental.

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COMMUNICATION AND THE PROCESSING OF INFORMATION

• Ability to take in information (INPUT)
• Understanding of information taken in
  comprehension (PROCESSING)
• Ability to respond (OUTPUT) usually speaking

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PART 1 Defining Terms and Concepts

• A COGNITIVE disability refers to the mental
  process of knowing, including aspects such as
  awareness, perception, reasoning, judgment, and
  learning.
• A COMMUNICATION disability refers to the physical
  involvement that impairs ones ability to convey
  information and ideas.

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FACTS

• Many people who have cognitive disabilities have
  an excellent recall of traumatic or special
  events in their lives.
• The communication method of the victim may be new
  to the interviewer, but it is an everyday, every
  moment method for the individual.
• Because of the severity of an individuals
  disability, you may think, at times, that a
  person cannot be interviewed. At these times,
  seek guidance from resources available in the
  community to go forward with and support a
  successful interview.

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FACTS

• Speech production problems do not signal an
  intellectual impairment.
• Problems with speech production may signal that
  the individual has a disability such as cerebral
  palsy or has suffered a stroke, and the mechanics
  of speech production have been affected (movement
  of the mouth and tongue, breathing to produce
  voice).
• However, in most cases, intellect is unrelated.

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FACTS

• Cognitive disability is unrelated to the ability
  to distinguish the truth from a lie.
• Children learn to distinguish the truth from a
  lie early in their developmental process.
• This ability is intact in most people who have
  cognitive disabilities.

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COMMUNICATION

• Some disabilities may result in difficulty in
  your communication with the person as a crime
  victim. These may include
• Person who is Deaf who cannot take in verbal
  language.
• Person who has a learning disability that affects
  how they process information.
• Person who has a speech impairment that may
  prevent them from verbally communicating or who
  are difficult to understand.

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Pre Interview

• Step 1 Personal Preparation
• Step 2 Knowledge of the Individual
• Step 3 Methods of Communication
• Step 4 Interview Site and Time Schedule

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Job Accommodation Network

• A free service of the U.S. Department of Labor
  Office of Disability Employment Policy that
  provides information about job accommodations,
  the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and
  the employability of people with disabilities.
• 1-800-526-7234 (V/TTY) or http//www.jan.wvu.edu/

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The Interview Process

• Preparing the Interview Site
• Introducing Yourself
• Providing for the Persons Needs
• Developing Rapport
• Language
• Personality Traits of the Person
• Interviewer Patience and Demeanor
• Signals/Signs of Stress or Need for a Break to
  Maintain Composure or Control

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PEOPLE WITH SPEECH DIFFICULTIES

• Having a speech difficulty does not mean a person
  does not comprehend or understand language.
• Take time to listen and relax.
• It is okay to ask the person to repeat for you.
• Eliminate background noises as much as possible.
• It is okay to say I do not understand. Patience
  is the key.
• May use assistive technology to communicate

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PEOPLE WHO HAVE COGNITIVE OR DEVELOPMENTAL
DISABILITIES

• Simple language and short sentences
• Speak slowly and clearly
• No technical terms, jargon or acronyms
• Use concrete terms and ideas
• Ask questions using few words.

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PEOPLE WHO HAVE COGNITIVE OR DEVELOPMENTAL
DISABILITIES

• Restate questions if needed.
• Ask the person to repeat back to you what you
  said.
• Proceed slowly and give neutral encouragers.
• Avoid questions that give the person the answer
  you expect.
• Phrase questions to avoid yes or no answers.
• Avoid frustrating questions about time, complex
  sequences, or reasons for behavior.

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PEOPLE WHO HAVE HEARING LOSS OR WHO ARE DEAF

• Hearing loss, deaf and hard of hearing have
  different meanings.
• Not all people who are deaf or hard of hearing
  can read lips.
• For someone who does read lips, always face a
  person and keep hands from in front of your face.
  
• Finger spelling is not the same as sign language.
• People who are Deaf will often times need an ASL
  or other type of interpreter to insure effective
  communication.
• Be prepared to use a TTY or the
  telecommunications relay system.

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Resources

• Roberta Sick, Project Director
• Victims Justice Crime Victims with Disabilities
  Project
• Partners for Inclusive Communities
• 2001 Pershing Circle Suite 300
• North Little Rock, AR 72114
• 501-682-9900
• 501-682-9902 TTY

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Additional Information

• Material ADAPTED FROM
• Victims with Disabilities The Forensic
  Interview-Techniques for Interviewing Victims
  with Communication and/or Cognitive Disabilities
• Available from
• U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice
  Programs, Office for Victims of Crime, April 2007
• http//www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc/publications/infores/
  pdftxt/VictimsGuideBook.pdf

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Issues or Questions