Criminal Behavior and School Discipline in Juvenile Justice-Involved Youth With Autism

• NCJ Number: 254045
• Journal: Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders Volume: 49 Issue: 6 Dated: 2019 Pages: 2268-2280
• Author(s): Alexandria M. Slaughter; Sascha Hein; Judy H. Hong; Sarah S. Mire; Elena L. Grigorenko
• Date Published: 2019
• Length: 13 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2013-JF-FX-0018
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical); Report (Study/Research); Report (Grant Sponsored); Program/Project Description
• Award: Trends in juvenile criminal case processing and education

Annotation

A sample of 143 JJY with autism was matched to comparison groups of JJY without a special education classification, JJY with learning disabilities, and JJY with other special educational needs (N = 572). Results showed that JJY with autism committed significantly fewer property crimes. With regard to school discipline, JJY with autism were least likely to receive policy violations, out-of-school suspensions, and in-school suspensions. Finally, regardless of special education classification, JJY who had a history of fighting in school were more likely to recidivate. Our results suggest that JJY with autism are not more likely to commit crimes compared to JJY without SEN.

Abstract

A sample of 143 JJY with autism was matched to comparison groups of JJY without a special education classification, JJY with learning disabilities, and JJY with other special educational needs (N = 572). Results showed that JJY with autism committed significantly fewer property crimes. Regarding school discipline, JJY with autism were least likely to receive policy violations, out-of-school suspensions, and in-school suspensions. Finally, regardless of special education classification, JJY who had a history of fighting in school were more likely to recidivate. These results suggest that JJY with autism are not more likely to commit crimes compared to JJY without special education needs. (publisher abstract modified)