Honoring Officers in Ethan Saylor’s memory

Written By DSAMD

Last week, on Ethan Saylor’s birthday, I was honored to attend and give remarks at the first annual Awards Ceremony hosted by the Ethan Saylor Alliance (ESA.)

The event recognized law enforcement officers who have demonstrated a strong commitment to keeping people with intellectual and developmental disabilities safe, included, and understood during interactions with police.

The ceremony was a powerful reminder of what is possible when advocacy and accountability come together. We are grateful to the Ethan Saylor Alliance for lifting up officers who lead with respect, training, and compassion.

Several years ago, I noticed there were no Down syndrome organizations were represented within the Ethan Saylor Alliance steering committee. After applying, I was appointed by the governor to the Alliance’s Steering Committee, ensuring that someone focused specifically on the Down syndrome community has a seat at the table in this important work. It is my honor to serve and advocate in this way.


Amanda Mummert, LPN, MNPM, Executive Director - DSAmd director@DSAmd.org / 410-321-5434 call or text

Here were my remarks from the day, prepared with the support of Jennifer Eastman from the Maryland Department of Disabilities:

We didn’t come about this work because of a positive event.

Too often, something bad happens and it forces us to look back and say, “what could we

have done differently?”

 In 2013, Ethan Saylor tragically died after an interaction with off-duty officers. What did we

learn and take away from that experience? That there was a lack of training and understanding

on how best to interact with people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. So we

developed training standards for law enforcement, we created a sample curriculum that could

be used across the state, and we passed legislation in 2015 establishing the Ethan Saylor

Alliance for Self-Advocates as Educators within the MD Department of Disabilities.

The Alliance’s focus is to position people with I/DD at the center of law enforcement trainings

because who better can communicate to officers their needs and preferences than people with

I/DD?

We are still working on this charge, but we’ve seen growth and progress. We’ve established

partnerships  with great organizations like Pathfinders for Autism to offer training that includes

people with I/DD, and we created a Community Impact Grants process that provides funding to

organizations like The Arcs of Washington and Frederick Counties and Barrier Free to create

opportunities for law enforcement and people with I/DD to form relationships of mutual respect

and understanding - elements of successful community policing. We are in the process of

revising our sample curriculum, will soon open up applications for Community Impact Grants for

its 4th year, and are gearing up for a public safety event in April. We encourage you to stay with

us on our journey and partner with us as we work to make sure everyone feels safe, included,

and understood.




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