Autistic people can also be misunderstood by professionals within the criminal justice system. There’s a tendency, particularly in relation to some serious crimes including terrorism and sexual offences, for criminal justice professionals to interpret ‘odd’ as ‘dangerous,’ or a risk.

Autism (including Asperger syndrome) is a serious lifelong, disabling condition affecting social behaviour and communication. An offender in custody with autism can have specific difficulties which may impact on their successful rehabilitation. Prison staff and providers working in prisons with a better understanding of the condition are more equipped to make a positive difference.Feltham is working towards achieving National Autistic Society accreditation , and will be followed by Parc and Wakefield prisons. what I do now there serve longer sentencesin many cases double someone without a disability si it does not sound like there getting the help though a  Prison at Feltham diagnose young people in the prison, if they are there long enough. In February 2016, they identified that 4.5% of their population had a diagnosis of autism, which they’d received either before or at the prison. It also requires main grade prison staff to refer prisoners they suspect are autistic.From discussions I have had with prison governors, they don’t think that numbers of autistic prisoners are large, but the impact on the prison can be significant as they struggle to identify the best ways to support them.Some prisons are aware that autistic prisoners are spending—and often choosing to spend—extended periods in Care and Separation Units (segregation), as they are quieter environments, without contact with other prisoners. HM YOI Feltham in West London was the first prison to achieve Autism Accreditation in 2016, after we’d worked with them to develop the specialist Autism Accreditation Standards for prisons however has the public proof of these standards? 30 prisons are interested in Accreditation, following a letter recommending Autism Accreditation sent to all prisons in England and Wales by the then Minister for Prison, Probation and Rehabilitation, Andrew Selous MP. The Minister also asked us to look at developing accreditation standards for probation services which have done and these are currently being piloted. Following this work, we had police forces interested in the programme. What is clear is that research has found that autistic people “represent some of the most vulnerable people in the offender population.   But there are of course cases where autistic people, like anyone else, can commit a crime. There are also cases where someone's autism may have a bearing on their behaviour. For instance, autistic people can have difficulty understanding unwritten social rules or how the world works, which can leave them open to being taken advantage of by others .running a campaign around this so-called mate crime). Autistic people can also be misunderstood by professionals within the criminal justice system. There’s a tendency, particularly in relation to some serious crimes including terrorism and sexual offences, for criminal justice professionals to interpret ‘odd’ as ‘dangerous,’ or a risk. which may bring autistic people into contact with the criminal justice system or to their behaviour being seen as more serious in its intent. For example, if someone commits an offence related to a special interest, they may speak about it in great depth and passion when asked, leading people to think they are cold and calculating. Likewise, many autistic people struggle with eye contact and this can be interpreted as having something to hide.More and more professionals are starting to understand more about autism and the different ways autistic people may respond to situations. This should help prevent people’s behaviour being misinterpreted. http://www.autismdailynewscast.com/sexuality-and-children-with-asd-understanding-appropriate-behavior/4621/ashleyisaacson/ Autism and crime People with autism are much more likely to be crime victims than criminals1, and are especially unlikely to be involved in premeditated violent crime or crime committed for personal gain. When they do end up in prison, the cause can be behaviour related to their autism (for example, obsessive behaviour that can turn into stalking or computer hacking,) or due to manipulation by others. I question how many  misunderstood and given an IPP sentence .In 2016 a Boy with Autism Jailed six times before he was diagnosed then kept in prison how like him are?  Sex crime is a distasteful subject, and the last thing I want is a negative association between autism and such behavior. Autistic people ARE NOT by nature sexual predators of any sort.  Multiple studies have shown autistic people are likely to  be victims far more often that we are perpetrators of crime in general and sex crime in particular. Abuse of people with disabilities is a well known and tragically common situation. it's impossible to lump them in the same box with other sex offenders.  The autistic folks I have met were not predatory, nor were they violent.  None had engaged in physical sex acts— all were viewing material online.  The thing that troubled me the most is that none of the individuals I met really understood what they had done, or why until later therapy revealed those answers.  Yet our legal system treated these people much the same as if they had solicited a twelve-year-old girl in a school yard, and had sex with her.  That, to me, is a miscarriage of justice. If it's recognition of autistic vulnerability that gets these people help instead of hard prison time, I am all for it. I have no wish to paint autistic people as potential sex offenders— they are not.  But I do feel  differences can place those at risk in some situations and this is one of them.   https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/my-life-aspergers/201308/autism-and-porn-problem-no-one-talks-about How it can go wrong with so called professionals and practitioners who put  Autistic in the same category as those who don't have a disability and claim to know how people with Autism  are influenced when its just poor understanding,most professionals and practitioners have trouble diagnosing someone with  Autistic spectrum never  mind claiming they understand.

Sex offenders? with autism Anew report jointly published earlier this week (10 April 2018) by the Prison Reform Trust and University of Leeds, examines sexual offending amongst people with learning disabilities and/or autism. Building on an expert, multi-sector seminar held in 2017, this new report provides a stimulus for further discussion, looking at the challenges faced both by the individuals themselves and the professionals and practitioners who work with them, suggesting practical ways forward and recommendations for improving outcomes. The report explores some of the reasons why people with learning disabilities and/or autism may get into trouble over an "alleged sexual offence. At times their actions may be influenced by factors that are similar to those affecting non-disabled offenders, such as lack of empathy, poor impulse control, or attachment problems. However other reasons that are particular to the experiences of people with learning disabilities and/or autism may include a lack of opportunity for appropriate sexual expression; limited knowledge about sex and sexuality; and cognitive distortions or poor understanding of the social sanctions attached to sexual offending. Several local, regional and national authorities and multi-agency partnerships have overlapping responsibilities for their health and wellbeing, and the array of support agencies can be confusing and hard to access—both for the individuals themselves and family members seeking help on their behalf.  The report concludes that an effective response to people with learning disabilities and/or autism who sexually offend requires professional health, social care and justice services to integrate support. It recommends that a focus on prevention and early intervention would improve outcomes for individuals, make communities safer and reduce the number of victims, and lessen the high cost of crisis intervention and secure care or imprisonment. The report makes a number of recommendations, some of the principal ones are summarised below: Education and learning about sex and relationships for children with learning disabilities and/or autism should be included in the curriculum from a young age, and reinforced throughout their statutory education. Effective specialist community-based forensic support should be delivered to meet the needs of people with a learning disability and/or autism. Family members should be involved and encouraged to share concerns about any sexually inappropriate behaviour. A whole system approach is critical. Services need to be co-designed with the active participation of people with autism and/or learning disabilities. Health and justice agencies should collaborate to agree a suite of shared, evidence-based interventions and treatment options for use in the community, and in secure and custodial settings. People with learning disabilities and/or autism who commit offences should not be treated less favourably by the combined criminal justice, health and social care systems. There are currently people detained in hospital for longer periods than they would have spent in prison, with no discernible clinical purpose or therapeutic benefit. Commissioners of liaison and diversion services, working together with the police, should ensure that all suspects are screened for learning disability and autism. Further research is needed to better understand the vulnerability and criminogenic factors of individuals with autism who display inappropriate sexual behaviour and sexually offending behaviour, including sensory needs, levels of anxiety, and general autism profile. All prison posts are kindly sponsored by Prison Consultants Limited who offer a complete service from arrest to release for anyone facing prison and their family. Prison Consultants have no editorial influence on the contents of this site. Criminal justice All criminal justice professionals may come into contact with people on the autism spectrum, many of whom may be undiagnosed or misdiagnosed. Here you will find information about autistic people, tips for initial police contact, interviews and court appearances, ways that parents and carers can help, and where to find further information and training.http://www.autism.org.uk/cjp http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/Portals/0/Documents/Behaviour%20that%20challenges.pdf http://www.thinkingautismguide.com/2017/04/what-happens-to-autistic-people-in.html https://www.express.co.uk/life-style/life/678334/autistic-child-parent-autism-aspergers-jailed https://www.express.co.uk/life-style/life/678334/autistic-child-parent-autism-aspergers-jailed