Criminal Justice System Interactions among Young Adults with and without Autism: A National Birth Cohort Study in New Zealand

While sensationalist headlines and highly publicised criminal cases have led many to believe there is a link between autism and criminal behaviour, extant literature presents an unresolved debate. We sought to address this issue by examining the prevalence of criminal justice system interactions among young adults with and without autism, and by assessing whether offence types differ between these groups. This was a national birth cohort study using linked health and criminal justice system data. Cox proportional hazard models were employed to compare criminal justice system interactions between young adults with and without autism, controlling for important socio-demographic characteristics. Data were acquired for 1197 people with autism and 147,879 without autism. Young adults with autism had significantly lower rates of being proceeded against by police, charged in court, and convicted in court compared to those without autism. However, those charged with an offence were significantly more likely to be charged with serious and violent offences, offences against the person and against property. Our findings indicate that, although young people with autism were not over-represented in the criminal justice system, disparities in offence types and incarceration rates among those charged with an offence suggest the importance of identification and appropriate response to autism within the criminal justice system.