Aspies For Freedom

Another one these types of news articles.  More of these and I would agree with Lili Marlene that we should push autistic supremacy to counter these negative stories.

http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/loc...ubsection=
14.06.2006
By RAE WILSON
A YOUNG autistic man, who masturbated in front of an eight-year-old girl walking to school in Tewantin after looking at pornography, walked free from court yesterday.

The court heard Luke Hartnell Worland — unsuccessful in a Mental Health Tribunal application — would be a “sitting duck” if he went to jail with his mental illnesses, social impairments and behavioural problems.

The 25-year-old pleaded guilty in Maroochydore District Court to exposing the girl to an indecent act, touching her on the arm while performing the act and possessing nine child abuse images on his computer in May, 2004.
  
Judge Michael Shanahan ordered Mr Worland to serve a 12-month jail sentence in the community and complete three years of probation. Mr Worland must also report his address to police for the next 12 years.
Crown prosecutor Les Hastie told the court the young girl was walking towards Tewantin State School at 8.30am on May 7 when Mr Worland approached her.

He said she became frightened and ran to school to tell her teachers what had happened.

Mr Hastie said Mr Worland had originally told police he was in his house all morning but later confessed he had walked outside after looking at pornography on the internet.

Barrister Simon Lewis said his client suffered from Asperger’s Syndrome, a form of autism, and had diverse psychological issues.

He said Mr Worland was now living and working with his father in Hervey Bay, and because of strict bail conditions had not left the house without his parents or carers since the offences.

Judge Shanahan ordered extra conditions on the sentences which require Mr Worland to complete cognitive behaviour therapy to address sexual offending, and attain treatment for Asperger’s syndrome, mood and anxiety disorders, and social functioning. He said the offences had seriously impacted the girl and her family.


Edited for decency.

I wonder what kind of Asperger's "treatment" they were talking about. Some sort of ABA-type thing?

Not happy... they're just assuming AS is related? I don't think he should be getting off lightly on account of his AS, though.

"Diverse Psychological Issues" - why the heck are they pointing out Aspergers as an excuse.

It's rather like saying "It's not his fault he stabbed someone 50 times - he's Diabetic". I think almost everyone on this site agrees they know that kind of behaviour is wayyy out of line, and I really don't see what AS had to do with it.

This article seems to draw a connection between a.s. and criminal sexual behaviour, which is totally false. This is either very poor writing or very poor research. Either way, it sucks,

Sorry this is not the first time I've said it. (Or even said it tonight). He has Asperger's OK, why di he behave in such a perverted and disgusting way? Don't tell me Asperger's. Why is the press again tying the two together. If he was not autistic would they say that on the basis that he wasn't autistic they were at a loss as to why he did it? No, they would probably dig a little deeper and find other issues and definate mental/psychological conditions.
I am autistic - I am not a danger to society - I am not more likely to kill, perform deviant sexual acts in public, commit suicide or the like. However to the majority of the public who have NO EXPOSURE to the 2% of the population who is on the spectrum, articles like these poorly, under-researched, stero-typing pieces of trash, are likely to give an ignorant public all the wrong images of us.
I hate the press!

I agree that just putting this guy in a regular jail would have been bad because he would have got attacked, but he needs help and he also needs to be watched to make sure this behaviour doesn't escalate into something even more serious.

I disagree. Jail him.

Yeah, but put him in solitary or protected confinement.

Socially naive Aspie in a normal jail... yeah, bad thing. It's pretty "cruel and unusual" to subject somebody like that to people who are in many cases professional victimizers.

I still think he should've been jailed, though. Solitary, maybe, or at least in a facility specialized for people with mental problems... Those "diverse psychological problems" should be enough to admit him. And let me tell you from someone who knows--getting put into a mental institution is not fun. It's the most boring place in the world, and punishment just as much as jail.

By the age of 25, surely even an Aspie would know that exposing himself to a young girl will make her afraid and infringe on her privacy; I think this person knew what he was doing was wrong. Even though he might not have been able to understand how she might feel, he should have been able to understand that this was against the law.

Let's hope this conviction sets him back on the right path; lets him know that he has to follow the rules.

And make sure the rules are completely explained to him so that he knows and understands why what he did was the wrong thing.