NCJ Number
222871
Editor(s)
Linda Steele
Date Published
May 2008
Length
105 pages
Annotation
This paper reports on a project that identified problems faced by defendants with intellectual disability in the local courts of New South Wales (Australia), in order to develop recommendations for reform.
Abstract
The study found limited awareness by police, lawyers, court staff, and magistrates of defendants' "intellectual disability," defined in this report as an IQ below 70, deficits in adaptive functioning, and presence of the disability before age 18. Even with defendants identified as having intellectual disability, there were difficulties in linking them with support services. In addition, the formal court process does not provide for exploring diversionary options. Neither does it provide adequate opportunity to explain to the defendant what was wrong with his/her conduct or the implications of the court's decision. Legal representation for such defendants is problematic because of the limited resources of New South Wales Legal Aid Commission; and they lack assistance in understanding police interviews and the court process. Because of the problems and systematic failure to accommodate case processing to the limitations of intellectually disabled offenders, they are at higher risk for recidivism. The recommendations offered in this report give priority to programs and services designed to reduce crime rates among intellectually disabled offenders, reduce their reoffending, reduce the levels of antisocial behavior, and embed prevention and early intervention into government services for these defendants. Improvements should be made through a multiagency approach. The report also presents the key features of a proposed model for the diversion of intellectually disabled defendants from the criminal justice system. The project's methodology involved obtaining data and information from secondary sources, consultations with criminal lawyers and other stakeholders, a focus group of people with intellectual disabilities processed by the New South Wales criminal justice system, and specific case studies. 68 references and appended court intervention and diversion programs in New South Wales