Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has been linked to a higher risk of criminal behaviour due to the impulsivity and reduced self-control associated with the disorder.
ADHD affects the parts of your brain that help you plan, manage behavior, and control your emotions and impulses. When those areas don’t work like they shoul, it’s easier to give in to urges that could get you into a jam – like driving drunk, getting into a fight, or breaking into a neighbours house.
Certain symptoms of ADHD are more likely to get you into legal trouble than others. Research has linked ADHD symptoms like inattention, impulsive behavior, and a lack of emotional control to the kinds of thoughts that cause people to commit crimes. Hyperactivity doesn’t seem to have the same link to legal problems.
As many as 1 in 4 people in prison have been diagnosed with ADHD – more than eight times the rate in the general population. The rate of ADHD is five times higher in youth prisons and 10 times higher in adult prisons than it is in people who aren’t in prison.
Given the high prevalence of ADHD in police stations, prisons and Crown court docks, understanding the condition’s possible impact upon fairness and participation is essential. This need has been recognised by the Ministry of Justice, whose 2021 Prisons Strategy White Paper underscored the need for greater understanding and adjustments for prisoners with ADHD (in response to the 2021 Neurodiversity in the Criminal Justice System report).
Having ADHD doesn’t make you a bad person. It also doesn’t mean you’re destined to end up in prison, even if you struggle to control your behaviors and emotions. Getting diagnosed and starting on treatment as early as possible could help you avoid legal problems and other issues ADHD causes.
ADHD can cause a few extra behavioural problems in the teen years and adulthood that increase the risk of legal consequences:
- Doing poorly in school, skipping school, or dropping out
- Hanging out with the “wrong” crowd
- Being defiant or aggressive
- Being unemployed
- Having substance use issues
There is a direct link between these problems and unlawful behavior. If you didn’t finish school, you’ll have fewer job opportunities. When it’s hard to find work, you may be more likely to get involved in illegal activities like stealing or selling drugs to get money.
ADHD also makes it harder to understand the consequences of your actions. People who do things like steal or sell drugs may not realize what effects these actions could have on others, or that they can lead to punishments like jail time.
WHAT’S THE LINK BETWEEN ADHD, ODD, AND CD?
When you have ADHD, you’re more likely to have other conditions that can also get you into trouble, including disruptive behaviour disorders like oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) or conduct disorder (CD).
ODD is the most common behaviour disorder that occurs with ADHD. Often ODD starts in childhood, but the symptoms can continue or get worse in adulthood. ADHD may share some of the same genes with ODD and CD.
ODD causes symptoms like anger, hostility, and disobedience. People with ODD don’t respect authority figures such as their parents, teachers, and police officers. They do things like lying and stealing that go against society’s norms and laws.
Adults with ODD may:
- Argue a lot
- Lose their temper often
- Blame other people for their behaviors or mistakes
- Refuse to follow the law or do what other adults tell them to do
- Annoy people on purpose
- Get easily annoyed themselves
- Be angry, spiteful, or out for revenge
Conduct disorder (CD) affects about 25% of children and 45% of teens with ADHD. It can lead to antisocial behavior, and sometimes jail time, in adults. People with CD have little to no regard for other people and refuse to follow society’s rules.
Having ADHD plus ODD or CD is a dangerous mix that further raises your risk of legal trouble.
HOW DOES CRIME AFFECT PEOPLE WITH ADHD?
ADHD is linked to both minor and serious illegal activities. People with ADHD are more likely to:
- Get speeding tickets and commit other traffic offences
- Steal
- Buy or sell illegal drugs
- Carry a concealed weapon
People with ADHD tend to get into trouble more than usual, often at an early age. They’re two to three times more likely to be arrested, convicted, and put into prison than those without ADHD.
Prison is a risky place when you have ADHD. The criminal justice system often doesn’t diagnose or treat people with this condition. That may be why prison inmates with ADHD are more impaired in their day-to-day life than those who aren’t in prison.
When you have ADHD, you’re more likely to also have a mood disorder. Untreated depression, anxiety, or bipolar disorder in prison leads to a high risk of suicide, especially in the first few weeks after someone goes to jail.
The lack of treatment in prison could lead to more legal problems ahead. People with ADHD who are released from prison are more likely to commit another crime, which is called recidivism.
Being in jail can have ripple effects on the rest of your life. Most people who’ve been in prison have a hard time finding work when they get out. When you can’t work, you can’t earn a living wage and you’re more likely to end up back in prison.
ADHD symptoms also make it harder to navigate the complex legal system. People who don’t have access to the legal aid, services, and treatments they need can easily get stuck in the revolving door of the justice system.
IN POLICE INTERVIEWS
- ADHD is associated with a threefold increase in previous reported false confessions(Gudjonsson et al., 2008).
- ADHD is associated with increased compliance, which means an individual is more likely to submit to a request or demand(Gudjonsson et al., 2008).
- ADHD can make it difficult for people to manage their emotions and responses during police interviews (Gudjonsson, 2010).
- Police can divert from best practice interview approaches when interviewing someone who presents with ADHD-like symptoms. This can lead to poor or inadmissible interviews (Cunial et al, 2018).
- “People with ADHD have been shown to apply maladaptive coping strategies when faced with stress, which are comprised of confrontation, escape-avoidance and lack of planning in problem-solving” (Gudjonsson, Young & Bramham, 2007).
- People with ADHD are more likely to answer “don’t know” to questions put to them in police interview (Gudjonsson, Young & Bramham, 2007). This can be perceived as evasive, dishonest or unhelpful by both interviews and courts when a case comes to trial.
- People with ADHD are especially likely to experience heightened discomfort and difficulty in police custody (Gudjonsson & Young, 2006).
AT COURT
During court proceedings, issues with attention, compliance, emotional management, executive function (e.g. short-term memory, inhibiting impulses, switching tasks, planning and organisation) may all negatively impact a defendant’s ability to understand legal advice, give clear instructions, understand legal argument, follow the thrust of evidence and to give evidence themselves (if they choose to do so). Brown et al. (2022) found that “the prevalence of mental illness and neurodevelopmental disorders in defendants is high. Many are at risk of being unfit to plead and require additional support at court, yet are not identified by existing services”.
The case of R v Friend (1997) offers a window into some of the difficulties a defendant with ADHD may face at trial. In this case, Mr Friend’s legal team argued that adverse inference should not be drawn from his decision not to give evidence at court because “the physical or mental condition of the accused makes it undesirable for him to give evidence”. The judge disagreed and ruled that the jury could draw adverse inference. The case was appealed and the conviction ruled unsafe, after the court of appeal heard from Dr Susan Bailey (an expert in adolescent psychiatry). She stated that it would have been undesirable for Mr Friend to give evidence, as he may have…
- struggled to maintain attention over a prolonged period.
- become easily distracted.
- lost focus and thought about irrelevant topics.
- ‘tuned out’ and missed chunks of proceedings.
- lost his train of thought during evidence.
- ‘blurted out’ the first response which came to his mind.
- become emotionally labile, distressed or angry.
- struggled to inhibit a verbally aggressive response.
IN PRISON
- People in prison who have ADHD are more likely to be involved in “incidents of verbal aggression, physical aggression, damage to property, self-injurious, arson and ‘other’ behaviours” (Young et al., 2009).
- “Once in a custodial environment, offenders with ADHD can present a management problem as their symptoms are reportedly associated with aggressive behaviours […] most likely due to their emotional lability and behavioural disinhibition” (Young, 2013).
- ADHD has many common co-morbidities, particularly conduct disorder and substance use. Vélez-Pastrana (2020) notes that “ADHD complicates and exacerbates the mental health needs of prisoners and thus requires treatment approaches that respond to this complexity”.
ON PROBATION
Probation is a crucial step in an individual’s journey out of the criminal justice system. However, supporting people with ADHD may be more challenging. For many there is little in the way of ‘joined up’ services. Those who are diagnosed with the condition in prison, for example, may leave prison with enough medication for a week, then receive no support and a long wait to restart medication which they have found helpful.
Difficulties with impulsivity and executive function may also make it particularly challenging for someone with ADHD to follow any conditions attached to their probation. In a study conducted into ADHD in probation caseloads (Young et al, 2014), probation staff…
- underestimated ADHD in their caseloads.
- felt service users with ADHD had problems with compliance, motivation and engagement.
- felt that available interventions were often not sufficient or not suitable.
- wanted more support and training to work with offenders with ADHD.
HOW DO I STOP THE CYCLE?
Getting the right diagnosis and starting ADHD treatment as soon as possible are the first steps.
Treatment for ADHD usually involves a combination of stimulant medicines, counselling, and lifestyle changes. ODD treatment includes medicine plus behavioural techniques like parent training and family therapy.
Social skills training can be helpful because it teaches you skills you need to prevent situations from getting out of control. In this program, you learn how to:
- Resolve conflicts
- Calm yourself down when you get angry or upset
- Listen and respond in the right way to people in authority
Outside influences are important, too. Individuals whose friends have behaviour problems are more likely to get into trouble themselves.
REACH OUT FOR SUPPORT
Getting the right help is important to prevent the kinds of behaviours that could get you into trouble. See a mental health provider for advice. You might also join a support group to learn some of the techniques that help with impulsivity and other challenging behaviours.
References
Neurodiversity-evidence-review-web-2021.pdfDownload
prisons-strategy-white-paper.pdfDownload
JournalArchiveArticle.PDFDownload
Approved-Brixton-ADHD-Prisons-Policy-solutions-roundtable-report-April-2023.pdfDownload
Takeda_ADHD-in-the-CJS-Roundtable-Report_Final.pdfDownload
Equalities-and-Human-Rights-Commission-ehrc_inclusive_justice_a_system_designed_for_all_june_2020.pdfDownload
Clair's Parents Meeting Parents ADHD 