Autism Spectrum Disorder Developmental Disabilities And The Criminal Justice System

For autistic people who find themselves facing a criminal charge, understanding how the features of autism may have contributed to their behaviour can be vital context for their defence. In this insightful book, Nick Dubin explores how and why autistic people get caught up in the criminal justice system. He delves into what steps can be taken to prevent autistic people committing crimes and what should be done to ensure their fair and appropriate treatment if they are charged with a crime. It covers everything from prevention to the aftermath of sentencing, including available counselling and therapy. Nick's personal experience and meticulous research shows that criminal justice can be an oppressive system that misunderstands and stigmatizes autistic people, especially low-risk individuals and those with less criminal responsibility.

Increasing numbers of people with autism and other developmental disabilities are being convicted of sex offences, resulting in draconian and public punishment. Yet even when evidence shows that people with these conditions often pose little threat to society, or lack a core understanding as to why their actions break the law, the "sex offender legal regime" doesn't allow any room to take the disability into account. This ground-breaking book offers a multi-disciplinary examination of how unjust sex offense laws trap vulnerable groups such as those with developmental disabilities. Drawing on research, empirical evidence and including case studies, experts from the fields of law, ethics, psychology and sociology explore what steps should be taken in order to ensure that laws are just and take into consideration factors such as the vulnerability of the perpetrators. Investigating the consequences caused by public hysteria over sex offenses, this book highlights the judicial failure to protect defendants with developmental disabilities in the context of the unjust and hyper-punishment of all those charged with sex offenses. Proposing a new way forward based on research and evidence-based sentencing for sex offenses, and elimination of the sex offender registry, this book offers an informed and compassionate view that is essential for all professionals working in this field.

This book focuses on autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the criminal justice system. Rather than being the perpetrators of offending behaviour, individuals with ASD are more likely to be the victims of crime. However, there is nevertheless a small subset of individuals with ASD who do offend, and this book provides an in-depth understanding of how certain features of ASD may provide the context of vulnerability to engaging in a number of types of offending behaviours. Chapters focus on arson or fire-setting; cybercrime (e.g., hacking); online sexual offending such as the viewing of indecent child imagery; offline sexual offending; violent crime; stalking; terroristic behaviour (including radicalisation and extremism); bestiality or zoophilia; and also extreme violence such as mass shooting and serial homicide. This book also outlines the ways in which a defendant with ASD may present in court and how they may exhibit behaviour which could be misinterpreted and perceived negatively, leading to an unfair trial. Lastly, it discusses the need to identify the impact that ASD can have on the capacity to form the requisite criminal intent and offers appropriate court adaptions to support individuals with ASD during court proceedings. This book is ideal for criminal defence lawyers and practitioners in psychology, psychiatry, and social work as well as policy makers and reformers.

Working with Autistic People in the Criminal Justice and Forensic Mental Health Systems: A Handbook for Practitioners is the first book to focus specifically on best practice for working with autistic people in criminal justice and forensic mental health settings. Integrating current theory, research, and clinical practice, this book provides a practical guide for multidisciplinary practitioners working with autistic people who have offended, at all stages in their pathway, regardless of the nature of offending. The book draws together contributions from leading scholarly and clinical experts in the field of autism and forensic issues as well as the views of autistic people under the care of forensic services. Each chapter focuses on understanding the impact of autism throughout the criminal justice and forensic mental health system pathways, including how these systems are experienced by autistic people and their families and carers. Case studies and practical approaches are provided to demonstrate the application of best practice to working with autistic people in secure settings. This book appeals to a wide audience within the fields of psychology, psychiatry, nursing, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, as well as criminal justice staff (e.g., prison and probation), and will be the first of its kind to amalgamate theory, research, and practice in the area of autism and offending.

An Important Contribution to Understanding Autobiographical and Eyewitness Memory in Those with ASD and the Unique Legal Challenges They Present This book offers an in-depth discussion of how autobiographical and eyewitness memory operate in individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and provides unique insights into current challenges faced by legal professionals, forensic psychologists, clinicians, and others who extend services to those with ASD. Throughout the book, authors demonstrate why a nuanced understanding of autobiographical and eyewitness memory is required when assessing individuals with ASD, given the developmental, social, and cognitive deficits at play. Authors review current legal services and structures, and explore ideas on whether and how modifications can be made to meet the needs of all individuals who seek and deserve justice, including individuals with ASD. The Wiley Handbook of Memory, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and the Law is sure to spark debate within the mental health and legal communities, while advancing knowledge on the role of key clinical features of ASD in autobiographical and eyewitness memory. The book is distinct in its exploration of ways in which the legal system, with its formal yet inherently social infrastructure and regulated due process demands, should offer services to those with ASD. Of note, authors question if current policies and practices, such as reliance on interviewing protocols standardized for typically developing individuals, are adequate. The book is divided into three sections with the first providing a discussion of theoretical viewpoints on how memory functions in those with and without ASD, and providing a specialized consideration of developmental issues. A second section reviews empirical evidence, followed by a third and final section addressing legal and clinical considerations, including techniques for interviewing individuals with ASD. The first book offering an expert, science-based review of autobiographical and eyewitness memory research on those with ASD and the associated legal challenges Provides thought-provoking, informative, often debated observations on memory in ASD from an international team of experts Offers summaries of what is known about memory abilities in those with ASD as well as what is left unknown that future researchers will need to address and that legal professionals should consider. A book that does much to advance the research frontier in the study of memory in ASD and application to the legal system, The Wiley Handbook of Memory, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and the Law is important reading for academic researchers, clinicians, judges, jurors, law enforcement officials, and public policy makers alike.

Brings together the growing amount of evidence on the assessment and treatment of offenders with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Written by a team of international experts, this comprehensive and informative book provides a contemporary picture of evidence-based practice for offenders with intellectual and developmental disabilities. By adopting a scientist-practitioner position directed at an academic level with practitioner guidelines, it provides a valuable reference source for professionals from allied disciplines who are using or seeking to apply research for this client group. The Wiley Handbook of What Works for Offenders with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: An Evidence Based Approach to Theory, Assessment and Treatment is divided into five sections: Introduction, Phenotypes & Genotypes and Offending Behavior, Validated Assessments, Treatment, and Conclusions. The Introduction offers an overview of the entire book and is followed by a second overview covering the ethics of evidence-based practice. After that come chapters on protecting the rights of people with intellectual disabilities in correctional settings, and behavioral and cognitive phenotypes in genetic disorders associated with offending. The third part of the book studies the assessment of individuals with anger and violence issues, inappropriate sexual behavior, alcohol abuse, and emotional difficulties. Next comes a section that looks how to offenders can be treated. The final section discusses future directions and requirements for offenders with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Provides an overview of the ethical challenges and issues faced by those who work with intellectually and developmentally disabled offenders Focuses on proof of treatment effectiveness and validation of assessment methods to direct readers toward "What Works" Features contributions from authors across the entire English-speaking world including the UK, US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand The Wiley Handbook of What Works for Offenders with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: An Evidence Based Approach to Theory, Assessment and Treatment will appeal to all who work in the field of offenders with intellectual and developmental disabilities, including nursing staff, social workers and probation officers, medical and psychology staff, and more.

Persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and the Criminal Justice System offers a multidimensional perspective for understanding the issues, dilemmas, and gaps that justice-involved persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their caregivers face in both the criminal justice system and community-based services in Canada, the U.S., and the U.K. Initial chapters in this book review issues such as identification, risk assessments, court supports, and accommodations as they relate to persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities; whereas, later chapters in the book are more focused on recognizing the unique issues and dilemmas that persons with ASD, FASD, and those labeled as a sex offender face in the criminal justice system and during intervention. Collectively, these chapters suggest that we need to adopt a framework that is flexible, person-centered, rights-oriented, and interdisciplinary for understanding the behaviors that bring people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to the attention of the criminal justice system and to be effective in the interventions that reduce the risk of recidivism.

For over a century, developmental disabilities have been associated with crime in prejudicial and pejorative contexts. Offenders with Developmental Disabilities provides a balanced, comprehensive review of the prevalence, nature and development of offending by those with intellectual disabilities. Not only does this volume include coverage of evidence-based assessment and treatment ideas, strategies and plans, but also places the field in a historical, legal and ethical context. William Lindsay, John Taylor and Peter Sturmey have brought together a wealth of contributors from differing backgrounds to share new material and knowledge of assessments, treatment, and service issues in a single volume. Divided into five parts, Part I opens with theoretical issues; Part II deals with legal and services contexts including ethical concerns; Part III considers risk assessment, general assessment and approaches to evaluation; Part IV addresses specific issues of sexual offending, anger and aggression, fire raising, dual diagnosis, female offenders and personality disorder; Part V concludes with service development, professional and research issues. Forensic practitioners and students from psychology and psychiatry, lawyers and advocates, nurses and social workers will all find this comprehensive and practical book an inspiration in taking this field forward.