Forensic investigation of conspiracy to commit a crime*

keywords: forensic, crime, impaired, autism, legal, jury, sentencing

Occupation:
Labourer

Question:
Is the defendant suffering from an underlying medical condition that lead to his involvement in a conspiracy to commit a crime?

Problem:
Legal council had not yet accessed critical medical information and had been relying on traditional subjective forensic assessment techniques, evidence which did not prove helpful.

Complications:
Defendant appeared as 24 year old high functioning adult.

Outcome:
The defendant's brain function was assessed and he was identified to be suffering from High-functioning Autism. An illness that affects theory of mind; the awareness of self conscious emotions such as embarrassment and shame; the ability to understand that behaviour has social consequences in the eyes of others; the understanding of the violation of social norm, and the ability to accurately understand another person's actions.

As a result, the jury found reasonable grounds to believe that the defendant?s involvement in the crime was not premeditated nor was there intent. The defendant was pronounced not guilty.

Conclusion:
The cognitive and social abnormalities that were objectively identified as being associated with the defendant's medical condition can account for his inability to identify the illegality and severity of the criminal associations which were formed and the alleged activities which the defendant became involved in. Because of the defendant?s significant cognitive (thinking and conceptual) deficits, the defendant would not have been able to comprehend the severity of the situation or the relevance of important incidents and his involvement. As a result the defendant would not have comprehended the need to act accordingly in a socially and legally appropriate manner.

*The case examples are based on clinical experience but are dissimilar from real cases. The examples provided are for illustrative purposes only and any resemblance to a real life case is of coincidence.