Autism Spectrum Disorder in the Criminal Justice System

This book focuses on autism spectrum disorder in the criminal justice system. It 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.

Auteur

Dr Clare S. Allely is a Reader in Forensic Psychology at the University of Salford in Manchester, England and is an affiliate member of the Gillberg Neuropsychiatry Centre at Gothenburg University, Sweden. Clare also acts as an expert witness in criminal cases involving defendants with autism spectrum disorder.

Texte du rabat

This book focuses on autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the criminal justice system. Rather than being the perpetrators of offending, individuals with ASD are more likely to be the victim 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 offer appropriate court adaptions to support them during court proceedings.

This book is ideal for criminal defense lawyers and practitioners in psychology, psychiatry, and social work as well as policy makers and reformers.

Contenu

Preface

Chapter 1: What is Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)?

Chapter 2: ASD and Offending Behaviour: Why it is Important to Recognise how ASD Symptomology can Provide the Context of Vulnerability for Engaging in Offending and Important Considerations when Interviewed by Police and Other Criminal Justice Professionals

Chapter 3: Risk Assessment: ASD and Issues with Current Standardised Risk Assessment

Chapter 4: Prevalence of ASD in Forensic Settings

Chapter 5: Psychiatric Co-morbidity in ASD

Chapter 6: ASD in the Courtroom: Why it is Important to Recognise this Disorder in Defendants

Chapter 7: ASD and Arson

Chapter 8: ASD and Sexual Offences (Offline and Online)

Chapter 9: ASD and Cybercrime

Chapter 10: ASD and Violent Offending

Chapter 11: ASD and Radicalisation and Extremism

Chapter 12: ASD and Extreme Violence

Chapter 13: ASD and Stalking

Chapter 14: ASD in the Prison Environment

Chapter 15: Conclusions and Recommendations *

Recommended Further Reading *