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Lunsky Y, Matheson FI, Kouyoumdjian F, Whittingham L, Lin E, Durbin A, Calzavara A, Moser A, Dastoori P, Sirotich F, Volpe T. Intellectual and developmental disabilities in Ontario's criminal justice and forensic mental health systems: Using data to tell the story. CRIMINAL BEHAVIOUR AND MENTAL HEALTH : CBMH 2024; 34:197-207. [PMID: 38264949 DOI: 10.1002/cbm.2331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2023] [Accepted: 01/04/2024] [Indexed: 01/25/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND International studies show that adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are disproportionately represented in the criminal justice and forensic mental health systems; however, it is difficult to capture their involvement across systems in any one jurisdiction. AIMS The current study aimed to estimate the prevalence of IDD across different parts of the criminal justice and forensic mental health systems in Ontario and to describe the demographic and clinical profiles of these individuals relative to their counterparts without IDD. METHODS This project utilised administrative data to identify and describe the demographic and clinical characteristics of adults with IDD and criminal justice or forensic involvement across four sectors: federal correctional facilities, provincial correctional facilities, forensic inpatient mental health care and community mental health programmes. Questions were driven by and results were contextualised by a project advisory group and people with lived experience from the different sectors studied, resulting in a series of recommendations. RESULTS Adults with IDD were over-represented in each of the four settings, ranging from 2.1% in federal corrections to 16.7% in forensic inpatient care. Between 20% (forensic inpatient) and 38.4% (provincial corrections) were under the age of 25 and between 34.5% (forensic inpatient) and 41.8% (provincial corrections) resided in the lowest income neighbourhoods. Medical complexity and rates of co-occurring mental health conditions were higher for people with IDD than those without IDD in federal and provincial corrections. CONCLUSIONS Establishing a population-based understanding of people with IDD within these sectors is an essential first step towards understanding and addressing service and care needs. Building on the perspectives of people who work in and use these systems, this paper concludes with intervention recommendations before, during and after justice involvement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yona Lunsky
- Azrieli Adult Neurodevelopmental Centre, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- ICES, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Flora I Matheson
- ICES, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Fiona Kouyoumdjian
- ICES, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Family Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | - Lisa Whittingham
- Azrieli Adult Neurodevelopmental Centre, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Child and Youth Studies, Brock University, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada
| | - Elizabeth Lin
- ICES, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Office of Education, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Anna Durbin
- ICES, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Andrea Moser
- Research Branch, Correctional Service Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Parisa Dastoori
- MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Frank Sirotich
- Canadian Mental Health Association, Toronto Branch, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Tiziana Volpe
- Azrieli Adult Neurodevelopmental Centre, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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Walsh D, Brooks G, Naka M, Oxburgh G, Kyo A. Forensic interviews conducted with autistic adults in Japan: a review of the literature and directions for future research. PSYCHIATRY, PSYCHOLOGY, AND LAW : AN INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF THE AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND ASSOCIATION OF PSYCHIATRY, PSYCHOLOGY AND LAW 2023; 31:216-234. [PMID: 38628248 PMCID: PMC11018090 DOI: 10.1080/13218719.2023.2192255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2022] [Accepted: 02/22/2023] [Indexed: 04/19/2024]
Abstract
The interviewing of victims, witnesses and suspects is important in helping resolve criminal investigations. In Japan, developments have recently occurred in the training of the police and their public prosecutors in these key tasks. Whilst literature exists on autism in Japan, studies examining police/public prosecutor interviews with autistic adults conducted in that country (and indeed, any other) remain scant. As elsewhere in the world, identification of those who manifest characteristics prevalent on the autism spectrum disorder (ASD) scale, has been found to be problematical to criminal justice professionals. To help address this deficit in understanding, we provide an overview of the literature concerning contemporary understanding of the challenges facing autistic adults as they attempt to reveal their verbal accounts, as well as suggested techniques when interviewing adults on the ASD scale during criminal investigations, offering lessons learned from research conducted around the world that provide potentially promising solutions for Japan.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dave Walsh
- School of Law, De Montfort University, Leicester, UK
| | - Graham Brooks
- School of Human and Social Sciences, University of West London, London, UK
| | - Makiko Naka
- Department of Psychology, Ritsumeikin University, Osaka, Japan
| | - Gavin Oxburgh
- Department of Social Sciences, Northumbria University, UK
| | - Akira Kyo
- Department of Law, Kwansei Gakuin University, Nishinomiya, Japan
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