People's experiences of the Criminal Justice System sought

Post Reply New Topic

Dear WP Community, I'm a staff member of the UK's National Autistic Society and a freelance writer/director. I've been asked to prepare a performance for the autumn based on the experiences of people on the spectrum dealing with any part of the criminal justice system. From store security thinking people look suspicious and meltdowns in public places to having to deal with lawyers and judges, it's well known that people on the spectrum have a tricky time of this area of life. The presentation will be short and we aim for it to use (anonymised) real experiences and make suggestions as to how bad situations can be avoided in the future.
If anyone has an experience they want to share which shows others what it can be like for people on the spectrum, then you can continue this thread or drop me a line at [email protected].
Alex has approved this post.

I work indirectly in the criminal justice system.

One time, about 35 years ago, a friend of mine mistakenly went through an open subway gate, thinking it was legal for him to transfer from one train to another through that gate. He is on the Spectrum.

Nope...It wasn't. He was arrested for "Theft of Services." He spent about five hours in a holding pen with perverts and hardened criminals. While being transferred to the holding pen, he almost got his butt kicked because he kept on putting his hands in his pockets (putting your hands in your pockets is a big no-no because cops would then think you seek to take out a gun from your pocket and use it as a weapon). He was quite tense and in "meltdown" mode; that's why he kept on putting his hands in his pockets.

Luckily, he was released on a "desk appearance ticket" after about 5 hours, instead of being held overnight to see the judge. They have him a court date two weeks after the arrest.

Fortunately, the case was deferred for six months; all he had to do is not get into any more police trouble. He succeeded in this, and was able to obtain a dismissal and sealing of his case. His case is not on record any more.

The only experience I have is bieng on jury duty twice. Never picked, too odd I guess