State Representative Carl Gilliard (D-Savannah) and State Senator Donzella James (D-Atlanta) held a “Saving Lives Day” press conference to highlight legislation aimed at improving public safety in Georgia at the South Wing Steps of the State Capitol.
During the press conference, which took place on Wednesday, Jan. 28, Gilliard and James discussed the following legislation:
· Senate Bill 419, “Eric’s ID Law,” which would allow individuals with physical or mental disabilities that are not immediately obvious or visible to request a symbol on the front of their driver’s license showing the presence of such a disability.
· House Bill 465, known as the “Autism Missing Person Alert System Act,” which would set up a rapid alert system for missing individuals with autism, like “Mattie’s Call.” HB 465 passed in the Georgia House during the 2025 legislative session and is currently awaiting consideration in the Georgia State Senate.
· House Bill 1011, known as “The Daren Lewis Saving Lives Act,” which aims to reduce fatalities and injuries from high-speed residential pursuits through preventative strategies and training for law enforcement.
Following the floor presentation, Eric Carpenter-Grantham and his mother, Linda Carpenter-Grantham, spoke to the press about Eric’s ID Law being passed in Maryland in October 2025, and now they’re on a mission to get it passed in all 50 states.
Eric and his mom said they were excited to be in Georgia, getting the opportunity to move Eric’s ID Law into the state.
“We hope and pray this bill gets passed here; however, during the press conference, I don’t know if they could hear us because everyone was talking, and it felt rude because this is about saving people’s lives, but we’re happy to be here,” she said.
The idea of Eric’s ID Law started when Linda had a conversation with Eric after the horrifying realization that people with disabilities, especially autism, would be hurt, harmed, and killed by law enforcement.
Approximately 25% to 50% of people killed by police in the U.S. have a disability, with individuals with untreated mental illness being up to 16 times more likely to be killed during interactions with law enforcement. Nearly 1 in 5 young adults with autism will interact with police before age 21.
People with developmental disabilities like autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are, according to frequently cited government data, seven times more likely to encounter police than neurotypical people. This, in turn, creates a lot of opportunities for tragic outcomes because there is a substantial overlap between the signs of ASD and behaviors that police are trained to view as suspicious.
Some examples include avoiding eye contact, pacing, or repeating words. In other cases, a person with intellectual or developmental disabilities may be unable to understand or perform a command by police.
“I told Eric if he ever is pulled over by law enforcement, put your hands up, don’t reach for your phone because it can be very dangerous, yell out I have autism, yell out my number, and yell out someone call my mom,” she said. “Eric started to cry because he said he could do that, but he was worried about his friends who may be harmed because they are different on the spectrum than he is.”
On the Maryland state-issued ID, there is a butterfly symbol placed. The significance of the butterfly stands for hope, peace, freedom, and change. The colors inside of the wings are the colors for all hidden disabilities, according to Eric and Linda. If passed in other states, this would be the symbol placed.
Also, Linda said Eric told her some of his friends have ADHD where they cannot sit still or have sensory issues where they’re sensitive to light and sound.
“He said, ‘mom, we’ve got to do something and we gotta do it now.’ He later came back to me and talked to me about putting a symbol on Maryland state ID’s where we live to let officers know that he and his friends have an invisible disability,” she said. “Eric is a person of God and loves politics and he asked me if I could take him to congress and have a conversation with the House Speaker that would create laws for him, his friends, and others to feel safe if ever stopped by the police.”
They both later met with their state senator Will C. Smith and Delegate Jheanelle Wilkins. The law didn’t pass the first time but eventually did afterwards.
“Our opposition came from a lot of people who do not look like us and not people of color,” she said.
So far, the duo has met with states like Delaware, New York, Pennsylvania, and had meetings with California, Arizona, Alabama, Illinois, Washington DC, Massachusetts, and now Georgia.
Senator James said she is immensely proud of Eric and his mother for having the strength and courage to push this law even against opposition.
“We have worked hard to look at so many safety laws. Autism is becoming an epidemic in our school system,” she said. “Even my second-born grandchild who is now 17 years old is autistic, and he might be on the high spectrum because he gets A’s and is a hardworker, but at one point, he was nonverbal. We’re screening our kids sooner and we’re finding out we have so many of our babies who are growing up with autism.
She also says Eric wasn’t only looking out for his best interests, but his friends’ who have disabilities as well.
“Eric understood that many of his friends or anyone with mental health issues may do something that the police may misunderstand,” she said. “We want to train our police officers and inform them that we have a lot of ‘invisible’ disabilities, because you can’t just look at them and tell. With Eric’s ID Law, there will be a symbol of a butterfly to notify officers that the individual has some mental health issue or disability.”
She also says this could prevent so many problems surrounding the misunderstanding of mental health and disabilities in dangerous situations that could result in a loss of life.
Additionally, Eric said his drive to get this law passed all over the nation is so people with disabilities can feel safe going outside in the world, which is also his number one priority.
“The disability community needs a voice, and I’ve been chosen to be that voice. I feel like because there are so many people who have come to me, cried, and said, ‘thank you, because my son, my daughter, or my loved one would speak about you and it brought me hope because they can speak like you one day’”, he said.
Eric also said he is trying to be that voice because there’s so many people who look like him who don’t have a voice, and he’s letting the world know he can hear you.
“I can hear you, my mom can hear you. It takes time because people don’t understand. My mom didn’t understand when I was born, but it took programs, research, and care,” he said. “With a lot of prayers and the help of my mom, this law is going to help people, and I don’t care how many doors are shut in my face, I’m still going to go through that door and get it done.”
Linda said she always told Eric he was created to stand out and not to fit in.
“He did not always feel like he fit in because he knew something was different about him, but I always tell him, you’re beautifully different. If people don’t want to be around you, it’s their loss,” she said.
Eric said as a person with autism, he wants the disability community to know this law was created for them and for him to feel safe and have a voice.
Furthermore, the mother and son duo said they want people to know they are pushing this law and it isn’t easy. With many prayers and tears, they have been given an assignment by God, and they want to see change happen.
“This is God’s idea that he gave Eric, and it’s his idea for us to because we had no idea, we would be moving this thing into America. It’s because of the public reaching out to us,” Linda said. “This is an assignment from God; we will not stop.”
Both Eric and Linda want this law to bring peace and make sure Eric’s ID Law brings voices for others and knowing your loved ones are safe in the world.
“I pray law enforcement will have time and patience to know that person might need help, how to communicate with them, so both parties can come into agreement and bring a peaceful transition,” Linda said. “Eric’s gonna bring change forever and ever, even when we are gone, it’s gonna bring change until the world ends.
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