Autistic 18 yr old charged with murder

i watch alot about autism.. 'they say autism has their own world..' no offence.. we shouldnt have to blame the boy for doing such a thing.. maybe something bad happen or something makes him do that. its going to do with his parents, teachers and therapists attitude. we have to understand them. i feel pity for that boy.. but because he killed his mother he had to face the consequences..

It's very difficult to put forward any opinion that's anything but assumptive to be honest. There are so many possible factors here that we are not aware of! Levels of autism of course vary and even though this 18 year old was non-verbal, it doesn't necessarily mean that his own autism precluded him for being able to use premeditation for one. And yes, we do need to place a significant amount of responsibility firmly on the shoulders of those caring for him, but again, his autism levels will directly affect the control and/or influence they may or may not have over him as well. If the bottom line is that he is a danger not only to himself, but others to the extent of being able to commit murder (Premeditated or otherwise), then he needs to be removed from society and placed in a ward surrounded by people that CAN deal with his condition and work towards stabilizing it. It's a sad reality, but I think that his placement in a criminal mental ward may be the most suitable option. At least for now.

This makes me wonder if my step mother is autistic? She doesn't seem to have a handle on reality, as she is very argumentative to the point that it is driving my Grandmother crazy. I read the first page of the article and three of the comments and this article and the responses. I feel that there certainly were a lot of issues that were not addressed. Knowing the trauma that we humans inflict upon each other the way the police officers handled this case and the problems between the son and his mother. I would add that the dysfunction in the family certainly did not help one iota. I think I get the point of your topic. We all need to work together in a network of support.

That is such a sad story. I am a primary school teacher and I have taught an autistic boy. He liked keeping to the timetable and hated things like practicing for a Christmas Play. He was scared of loud noises and so it was a challenging moment when the fire bell went off. A band came to play so he sat with his hands over his ears. He had a special needs assistant and she was excellent. My toddler son goes to a playgroup for disabled children. There is an autistic boy that goes there. I have a friend with an autistic daughter and I think it is unusual to have an autistic girl. My toddler son has spina bifida and he gets help from many professionals from physiotherapists to surgeons. Being the parent of a special needs child is not easy. Some disabilities are understood like a child in a wheelchair can't walk and a man with a guide dog is blind. However autism is complicated for some people to understand.

Heartbreaking. There are resources available to parents of autistic children with behavioral problems. There is intensive intervention that she could have applied for through the Federal Government that she wouldn't have had to pay for. It would have taken a lot of her time, but it was available. Intervention could very likely have prevented this. I wonder how much he understood about what he was doing. He certainly doesn't belong in prison out in the general population but he does need to be in a facility somewhere with caretakers who understand how to deal with severe autism.