Fred Volkmar, M.D., Irving B. Harris Professor and Director of the Child Psychiatry, Pediatrics, and Psychology at the Yale University Child Study Center, Goodwin Endowed Chair of Special Education at Southern Connecticut State University

The purpose of this talk is to explain what autism spectrum disorder is and how to understand the implications of autism for interacting with clients with autism. This talk discusses the basics of the disorder, history, research, some characteristics, and management strategies.

Rachel Loftin, Ph.D., Licensed Clinical and School Psychologist

This talk covers the diagnosis of autism in legal cases and the key features that apply across a range of legal cases. The developmental course, diagnostic process, challenges, and controversies associated with an autism diagnosis are addressed.  

Katie Maras, Ph.D., Senior Lecturer in Psychology and Deputy Director of the Centre for Applied Autism Research (CAAR) at University of Bath

This talk explains how autism might impact a person’s ability to provide evidence. How effective current police interviewing methods are for an autistic person and what adaptations can be made. It explains some remaining challenges and alternative techniques that could be used.

Mark Brosnan, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology and Senior Lecturer in Psychology and Director of the Centre for Applied Autism Research (CAAR) at University of Bath

Cyberattacks are one of the most likely and impactful threats to business around the globe. This talk focuses on how law enforcement perceives autism and autistic-like traits in connection to cybercrime by reviewing current research. Autistic-like traits, not autism, predict the likelihood of engaging in cybercrime.

Ian Freckleton, Q.C., Health Law Attorney, Professorial Fellow in Law and Psychiatry and Co-Director of the Health and Medical Law Program at University of Melbourne

This talk focuses on the purpose of expert evidence as it relates to persons with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who have been charged with criminal offences. The presentation focuses upon the challenges for forensic experts who give evidence about criminal responsibility and culpability. It addresses what can be the impaired capacity of defendants, sentencing issues, the extradition of persons with ASD, and the burdens that imprisonment can bring.

Alexia Stack, M.Ed., Clinical Director and Board Certified Behavioral Analyst (BCBA) at A Block AboveBehavioral Consulting

The experience of traumatic events is ubiquitous amongst people. It is estimated that at least 52% of the population has experienced at least 1 trauma in childhood. Children on the autism spectrum are more likely to incur trauma, as they are highly vulnerable for a range of reasons. Children who have experienced trauma suffer from a range of emotional, biological, cognitive, and behavioral side-effects. In our presentation, we review what trauma is, how it affects the development of children, and how one can tease apart the symptomatic differences between autism, trauma, and a child on the spectrum who has experienced trauma.

Alexander Westphal, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Professor of Psychology and Child Psychology at Yale University School of Medicine

This presentation discusses the process of risk assessment in autism and argues that recognizing the distinction between different types of violence and understanding their associations with autism separately is an important aspect of ensuring that the actions of a minute number of individuals do not dictate the way society views autism. 

Fred Volkmar, M.D., Irving B. Harris Professor and Director of the Child Psychiatry, Pediatrics, and Psychology at the Yale University Child Study Center, Goodwin Endowed Chair of Special Education at Southern Connecticut State University

This presentation covers the basics of bullying, including definitions, risk factors, when and where it is most prevalent, how to respond, and its impacts on individuals with autism.

Marc Woodbury-Smith, Ph.D., MRC Psych, Psychiatrist and Senior Clinical Senior Lecturer in the Biosciences Institute at Newcastle University

People with autism spectrum disorder are vulnerable individuals. This presentation focusses on what research has taught us about the interface between autism and the criminal justice system and objectives for future research. The focus will be on individuals with ASD as perpetrators, as much of the research so far has focused on this population from the point of view of risk factors, and important aspects pertaining to vulnerability during the criminal justice process.