Transcript Disability Awareness Training - Community Solutions to Sexual and

I-CAN! Accessibility Project
Virginia Commonwealth University
School of Social Work
and
Partnership for People with Disabilities
Materials within this PPT may be used with proper citation
To provide information of how to assist people with
disabilities affected by sexual and/or domestic violence
1.
Become familiar with the how DV/SV may affect
people with disabilities
2.
Identify obstacles that could hinder a person’s ability to
fully participate within the court system
3.
Become familiar with the types of accessibility
accommodations
4.
Identify safety planning needs for people with
disabilities affected by violence
Invisible
Visible

Hearing Impairment

Mobility

Mental Health

Blindness

Learning Disabilities

Cerebral Palsy

Traumatic Brain Injury

Mobility Control

Intellectual Disabilities

Autism Spectrum Disorder

Abuse is likely to continue for a longer period of time
for women with disabilities compared to women
without disabilities
(Young, M.E., Nosek, M.A., Howland, C., Chanpong, G., & Rintala, D.H. 1997)

Sexual assault is four times more common
among women with disabilities than those
without. (Martin, S. L. et al, 2006)

People who experience violence are also at risk of
experiencing disabling conditions, including
traumatic brain injury and neurological impairment
(Banks, M.E. & Ackerman, R.J. 2002; Wilber , L. et al 2001))

One study found that women with disabilities had a
40% greater chance of experiencing violence
compared to women without disabilities (Brownridge, D.A. 2006)

About 8% of people within Virginia receiving advocacy
services identified as having a disability

About 11% of the people identified with a disability
acquired the disability as a result of domestic or sexual
violence

88%-98% of perpetrators are men and are known
by the victim/survivor

33% acquaintances

33% family member or foster family members

25% caregivers, service providers
(Sobsey, 1998)

More frequently

For longer periods of time

Less likely to escape the abuse

Less likely to access the criminal justice system

More likely to remain in situations that increase their
vulnerability and risk of repeated abuse

“Medication manipulation

Refusal to provide assistance with essential
activities of daily living

Denial of access to telephones and other
communication devices

Destruction of adaptive equipment”
(Powers et al., 2002; Hughes et al., 2011, pg.302).

Social isolation

Caregiver reliance – eliminating a sense of
personal body space

Learned compliance

Segregated living environments and other
“closed systems”

Often aren’t believed

Limited communication
 Use of unqualified interpreters by service
providers
 Lack of communication ability

Limited knowledge of what is assault and what is
illegal or not illegal
Disability, Violence and Survival
A Personal Story
Safe Place
PO Box 19454
Austin, TX 78760
www.austin-SafePlace.org
512-267-SAFE (Voice)
512-927-9616 (TTY)
The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)
(42 USC § 12101 et seq) requires:
1. All state and local governmental entities,
including courts, to accommodate the needs of
individuals with disabilities who have an interest
in court activities, programs, and services.
2. The courts to modify programs to integrate
persons with disabilities, eliminate discriminatory
practices or procedures, and provide alternatives
to communications limitations and differences.
(CA Bench Handbook, 18).
The court, not the individual with a disability, is
responsible for providing accommodations.
“[A] public entity shall furnish appropriate auxiliary
aids and services where necessary to afford an
individual with a disability an equal opportunity to
participate in, and enjoy the benefits of, a service,
program, or activity conducted by a public entity.”
28 CFR §36.160(b)(1).
Accommodations must address
diverse disabilities,
which can vary in nature and degree
from person to person.
Advocate for:
 the appropriate type of communication
accommodation
 a clear explanation of information and forms
provided by the court
 the ability to move throughout the court without
barriers and limitations
1. Overwhelming experience
• Emotionally
• Physically
2. Inability to complete required forms
• Learning disability
• Sight disability
• Mobility disability
3. Fear that Court Personnel will not be
knowledgeable of disability limitations
• A person with Traumatic Brain Injury may not
be able to remember details therefore gives
appearance of changing his/her story and/or
being untruthful
• Flat affect may be a result of PTSD,
depression or Traumatic Brain Injury and may
not have expected emotion to match the
incident(s) being discussed.
4. Concern of accommodation limitations that may
impact the court experience
• Lack of appropriate parking
• Lack of appropriate space needed to move
wheelchair through hallways, rooms, doorways
• Building does not provide enough lighting
• Communication limitations

Are there physical barriers making it difficult to enter the
Court Building?

Where are the accessible parking spaces for people
with disabilities?

Are the accessible parking spaces wide enough to
accommodate a van with a wheel chair ramp?

Is a person utilizing a wheel chair able to get through all
doorways into the various rooms throughout the court
building?

How much walking and standing will each person be
required to do to participate in the court proceeding?

It is okay to ask a person with a visual impairment if
he/she would prefer guidance as he/she walks
throughout the court?

Look directly at the person intended to receive your
information when speaking
• Communication should be directed at the person
utilizing the sign language interpretation not the
interpreter
• Communication should never be made while back or
side is toward person intended to receive the
communication

Always Identify who you are before speaking
• A person with a cognitive disability may have
difficulty remembering details
• A person with a visual impairment will rely upon this
verbal identification throughout the entire court
process as a means to identify who is providing
assistance

All people within a certain disability population do not
use the same communication accommodations
• Not all people who use sign language interpretation
use the same form of sign language
• Not all people who are deaf or hearing impaired can
read or effectively write as a form of communication

All people within a certain disability population do not
use the same accommodations
• Always ask the person what type of accommodation
best meets his/her need
• Not all people who are blind utilize Braille

Sign language interpreters are available through the
court

The procedures to obtain sign language interpretation
may vary depending on the court

Check with the court on the need to establish a
procedure for the availability of sign language
interpreters; especially for the “non-planned” process of
filing for protective orders
1. Providing specific services such as: assistive listening
systems, sign language interpreters, oral interpreters,
real-time captioning, written material on computerreadable disk, telecommunications devices for the
deaf (TDD), videophone, or reader services for a deaf
or hard-of-hearing person.
2. Providing Braille materials or the assistance of a
sighted person to describe objects or diagrams for a
blind person.
3. Providing for a person who is sensitive to chemicals or
scents, lighting, air conditioning, or other environmental
elements in the court building or in specific rooms.
4. Permitting the accompaniment of a trusted advisor,
companion or other assistive personnel for a person
with an emotional or other disorder.
5. Transportation to and from the shelter and court

Barriers of the victim’s disability should always be
considered

Safety plans should include disability resources

Resources and educational materials should always be
provided within the users primary language such as:
braille, sign language, information matched to meet
any intellectual disabilities

Safety planning should incorporate any type of new
technology and accommodations that may improve
safety

How does the victim’s disability effect him/her in an
emergency?

Does the consumer have a safe place to go in an
emergency, day or night?

Are there service providers or other support services
connected to the abuser in any way?

Identify a manner in which the victim may be able to call
911 either from home or a shelter

Plan for ability to access needed medications in the
event the victim needs to leave his/her home

Develop a plan to gather important documents (birth
certificate, guardianship papers, insurance , etc.)

Identify safe places the victim may go, day or night, in
the event of an emergency. Consider the victim’s
disability when identifying a shelter and/or safe place
means of transportation.

Identify any medical or accommodation equipment that
victim will need when leaving. This equipment may
include service animals.
Identify the community needs in assisting people with
disabilities
Establishing working relationships between service
providers throughout the community
Cross training and educational opportunities
Local Police Department
Local Sexual and Domestic Violence Shelter
Local Victim Witness Program
Disability Service Agencies;
 Local Center for Independent Living
 Local branch of Arc
 Virginia Department for the Deaf and the Hard
of Hearing
 Virginia Department for the Blind and Visually
Impaired