ArticleAutism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research2022
Autism and the criminal justice system: An analysis of 93 cases.
Article in Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 15 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
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Who cites it
15 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 27 citations in OpenAlex.
- Characterization of autism spectrum disorder inside prison.Revista espanola de sanidad penitenciariaPooled it
- Truly Sorry? Effects of Diagnostic Information on an Autistic Defendant's Perceived Remorse, Honesty, and Guilt.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2026Article
- "I Feel Like They Were Made in a Very Neurotypical World": Autistic Adult Experiences and Perceptions of Social Rules, Instruction, and Laws.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2026Article
- The Narrative Coherence of Autistic Children's Accounts of an Experienced Event in Response to Different Interviewer Prompts: A Longitudinal Study.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2026Article
- Brief report: A survey of California state court judges on a case vignette involving a defendant with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).Research in autism · 2026Article
- Priorities for change for autistic people across Europe.Molecular autism · 2026Article
- Neurodiversity in Custody: Screening Results for ADHD and Autistic Traits in Individuals Arrested by the London Metropolitan Police.Criminal behaviour and mental health : CBMH · 2025Article
- Experiences of Autistic People in Police Custody: The Need for Adjustments to Improve Participation in the Custody Process.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2025Article
- Characteristics of harmful sexual behaviour in autistic adolescent males as compared to controls.Psychiatry, psychology, and law : an interdisciplinary journal of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Psychiatry, Psychology and Law · 2025Article
- Case Report: Death penalty versus indefinite imprisonment in Japan: a case note of two court judgments involving autism spectrum disorder and autistic traits.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Article
- Breaking Down the Stigma: A Review of the Literature on the Relationships between Autism Spectrum Disorder and Criminal Behavior.Brain sciences · 2024Review
- Article
- Are autistic people disadvantaged by the criminal justice system? A case comparison.Autism : the international journal of research and practice · 2023Article
- Police suspect interviews with autistic adults: The impact of truth telling versus deception on testimony.Frontiers in psychology · 2023Article
- Autism and the criminal justice system: An analysis of 93 cases.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
We investigate whether autistic people's vulnerability is taken into account at each stage of the criminal justice system (CJS). Defense lawyers from 12 nations were included in the study although the sample was predominantly from the UK. Lawyers completed an online survey regarding one case in which they had defended an autistic client between January 2015 and January 2020; and on one case in which they had defended a nonautistic client charged with a similar offense, to provide a comparison group. Ninety-three lawyers (85% in the UK) reported on one autistic case, and 53 also reported on one nonautistic case. 75% of autistic clients were not given reasonable adjustments during the process. Only 43% were offered an appropriate adult during police investigations, even though they had an existing diagnosis of autism. 59% of prosecution barristers and 46% of judges said or did something during the trial that made the lawyers concerned that they did not have an adequate understanding of autism. Lawyers were 7.58 times more likely to be concerned about their autistic client's effective participation in court and were 3.83 times more likely to be concerned that their autistic clients would engage in self-harm, compared with their nonautistic clients. There is a failure to identify and address autistic peoples' disability within the CJS. There is a need for mandatory autism training for police officers and the judiciary, with a focus on identifying autism and understanding the needs of autistic people so that reasonable adjustments are offered in all cases. LAY SUMMARY: This study sought to investigate if the needs of autistic people are being overlooked by the police and other professionals within the CJS. Results show that autistic people are not always given the support they need during police questioning or in court. The experience of being involved with the police may also have a more negative impact on autistic peoples' mental health than that of nonautistic people.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.