Every new police officer in South Carolina is required to take a 2-hour course that deals with the developmentally disabled offender. A 10-minute film provides illustrations of how a mentally retarded offender might behave when confronted by a police officer after an offense, and various categories and levels of disabilities are explained. The course also uses lecture, discussion, and roleplaying in the handling of mentally retarded offenders under various circumstances. Emphasis is given to identifying mentally retarded persons by behavior, appearance, speech, academic performance, and social adaptation. A correspondence course can also provide inservice training for various criminal justice personnel who may frequently deal with mentally retarded offenders. Workshops can also be used to provide inservice training; e.g., South Carolina has provided a police workshop on dealing with the mentally retarded offender in crisis situations, such as resisting arrest. Films can inform criminal justice personnel about developmentally disabled persons as well. A film entitled, 'What to Do with James' portrays the processing of a mentally retarded youth through the juvenile justice system. Training manuals should include sections on dealing with the mentally retarded offender, and in some cities hotlines are used to inform inquiring police officers on how to handle situations involving developmentally disabled offenders. Television, radio, and the newspapers offer further opportunities for presenting to the general public and criminal justice personnel information on the problems of the mentally retarded offender. Eleven notes and eight references are provided.