Persons with Disabilities and the Legal System

Persons with disabilities represent one of the nation's largest minority populations. They are overrepresented in the criminal legal system as persons who are accused as well as persons who are victims of crime. In both the criminal legal system and in society generally, persons with disabilities are often denied meaningful access to the processes and protections afforded to the general population. These training materials and resources provide introduction to some of the issues and challenges that exist in our criminal legal system for persons with disabilities.

It is important that all criminal legal system stakeholders gain a better understanding of core concepts relating to intellectual and developmental disabilities and their impact on involvement with the legal system.

On the page linked below, you will find a series of videos on the intersection of disability rights and the criminal legal system.

Watch The Videos

For those interested in a general introduction to Disability and the Criminal Legal System, we encourage you to watch our webinar series with Disability Belongs™.

Comfort Kits for People with Disabilities

Lucy Beadnell (Director of Advocacy, The Arc of Northern Virginia) and Melissa Heifetz (Founder, Advocacy Partners) introduce and explain comfort kits and their component parts. The affordable, household items in comfort kits improve criminal legal system interactions for many people with disabilities. The kit is designed to be kept by a first responder or justice personnel and re-used over time. For more detailed information about comfort kits, see our information sheet.

Resources

Crime Against Persons with Disabilities, 2009–2019 – Statistical Tables, Erika Harrell, Ph.D., BJS Statistician U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics. (2021)
Effective Communication with Deaf, Hard of Hearing, Blind, and Low Vision Incarcerated People, Tessa Bialek and Margo Schlanger, Forthcoming, Vol. 26, J. Gender, Race & Just. (2022).
Disability Language Style Guide, (National Center on Disability and Journalism, Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Arizona State University)
Disability Research Library, (Prison Policy Initiative)
Disability Response Teams (DRTs) Explained, (National Center on Criminal Justice & Disability, The Arc)
Effective Communication with People with Disability, (Supporting Justice, Centre for Innovative Justice, RMIT University)
FAQ about Titles II and III of the ADA, (U.S. Department of Justice)
Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Who Become Involved in the Criminal Justice System: A Guide For Attorneys, (The Criminal Justice Advocacy Program and the New Jersey Bar Foundation)
Interactions with Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, (Model Policy, IACP Law Enforcement Policy Center)
Prosecutor’s Guide for Crimes Involving Victims with Disabilities, (Adult Advocacy Centers)
Reckoning with Race and Disability, (Jasmine Harris, Yale Law Journal Forum)
Supporting Crime Victims with Disabilities Online Training Toolkit, (Vera Institute of Justice)
Webinar Series: Contemporary Issues in Disability and Criminal Justice, (Mid-Atlantic ADA Center)
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

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