Nikolas Cruz Continues to Fuel Autism Misconceptions

Nikolas Cruz’s name was trending yet again today, this time from a set of disturbing cell phone videos in which he callously talks about his impending attack on Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

As the Parkland Shooting and Nikolas Cruz continue to resurface in countless news cycles, the autism community is yet again having to fend off misconceptions about the disorder. Like other recent mass shooters before him, Cruz is said to have autism, along with a slew of other emotional and psychological disorders.

In the majority of these shootings, the perpetrators were reported to have ASD by either family, friends or the media. Unfortunately, these reports have continued to feed a false narrative that those with autism have a higher propensity for violence and mass murder than those without the condition. Nothing could be further from the truth.

There are multiple published studies affirming that those with autism are no more likely to commit crimes than their neurotypical counterparts (Barnhill, 2007; Griffith, 10 May 2006) and (Im, 2016). There is also evidence to suggest that those with autism actually have an increased risk of being the victim rather than the perpetrator of violence (Sobsey, Wells, Lucardie, & Mansell, 1995 Sobsey, D., Wells, D., Lucardie, R., & Mansell, S. (Eds.) (1995). And in one of the most comprehensive studies on this topic to date, it was shown that individuals with autism spectrum disorders are actually LESS likely to engage in violent acts.

So why are individuals with autism getting such a bad rap?

Sensational media reporting is partially to blame, but the core reason is that autism is a complex condition that frequently manifests with other disorders, including ADHD, depression, bipolar disorder and other psychiatric issues. In fact, the comorbidity rate of autism is reported to be around 75%. As such, in these mass shooting cases, autism is often scapegoated, while the existence of more serious conditions and use of medications known to cause aggressive behavior are often overlooked.

A piece by Dr. David Rettew in Psychology Today entitled The Link Between Autism and Violence Isn’t Autism addresses the comorbidity issue in detail and raises some important points:

In terms of raw numbers, a total of 4.4% of individuals with autism had been convicted of a violent crime versus 2.6% of individuals without autism. Analyzing this in a more statistically comprehensive way, the authors of the study found that there continued to be about a 40% increased risk between autism and conviction for a violent crime event after mathematically accounting for things such as age, sex, and some parental factors …. However, when the researchers also took into account other psychiatric disorders the individuals had, in particular ADHD and Conduct Disorder, the association with autism faded away and became statistically nonsignificant.

Not surprisingly, along with his autism diagnosis, Nikolas Cruz is reported to have obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder and engaged in repeated self harm. He also reportedly took Clonidine and Focalin. In addition, it’s clear from the cell phone videos that Cruz is an extremely troubled young man whose issues expand way beyond his autism.

Autism stereotypes within the media have existed for quite some time (e.g. Rainman) and it’s unlikely they will be going away anytime soon. However, my hope is when the next tragedy occurs (God forbid) those in the media and elsewhere will be responsible and educate others about the lack of evidence linking autism to violent behavior.