BANGOR, Maine — Area police officers learned a new skill Monday thanks to a program called American Sign Language for Police.
While not every officer has had to communicate with a deaf or hard of hearing person, chances are good that they will at some point.
According to statistics compiled by the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, about 15 percent — or 37.5 million — Americans report some trouble hearing.
Monday’s training at the Bangor Police Department was provided by TajaRay Ferland, owner of All Hands on Deck, a signing skills and communication company.
The idea was to arm law enforcement officers with some American Sign Language basics so that they can bridge the communication gap with people who are deaf or hard of hearing until an interpreter arrives, Ferland said.
“This is just about calming everything down,” she said, adding that the class and related material are in no way a substitute for providing a certified sign language interpreter as the Americans with Disabilities Act requires in most cases when police interview a deaf suspect.
During the roughly hour-and-a-half classes, police officers learned how to sign yes, no, are you deaf, do you understand, I called an interpreter, help is coming, calm down, wait, police, are you high, have you been drinking, get out of the car and hands in the air. They also learned the hand gestures for license, registration, insurance, speeding, and “straight exam,” or field sobriety testing, to name a few.
They learned that they should voice what they are signing in the event that the person with whom they are communicating is able to read lips, to make eye contact, that deaf people should only be read their Miranda rights through a sign language interpreter, and that if an interpreter is declined, to make sure that a deaf suspect signs off in writing or via video.
After some role playing, participants got to try out their new skills via a Skype session with Ferland’s friend, Bryant Smith of Tucson, Arizona, who is deaf and helped her develop the class.
According to Holden police Sgt. Eugene Fizell, coordinator of the Region 5 Training Council, the training idea was presented by Veazie police Officer Brian Nichols. It was co-sponsored by the Bangor and Veazie police departments.
Also while in Bangor, Ferland taught a session on a gesture system that law enforcement can use to improve officer safety while dealing with issues ranging from crowd control and domestic violence to warrants, traffic stops, and drug and sex crimes.