ND and the Criminal Justice System

Melanie Jameson is an adult dyslexia specialist and Special Adviser to DANDA. She has worked as an expert witness and undertaken consultancy for the Law Society & the Colleges of Law. Her current priority is to promote an understanding of Specific Learning Differences within the court system.

You may think that this does not affect you but read on…..

We may come before courts or tribunals in a number of roles: as witness to or victim of a crime.. Perhaps it is a family issue, such as custody of children, a dispute with neighbours or a driving offence. Other possible scenarios include employment tribunals or benefits appeals. People with Specific Learning Differences (SpLDs) / neuro-diversity (ND) appear in all these settings on a daily basis.

Courtroom skills

If you consider the skills and abilities that make for a successful court ‘performance’, they probably read like an inventory of what you find particularly challenging:

·       concentration and freedom from distractibility

·       understanding the import of questioning and responding appropriately

·       focused listening

·       rapid information processing skills

·       ability to locate and respond to written information (on the spot)

·       good oral skills

·       accurate recall

·       consistency

·       the ability to cope with stress.

Your credibility is on the line if you are hesitant or inconsistent. You can appear evasive by missing the point of questions – this is all too easy when questions are oblique or compound in nature.

As an expert witness, I have had opportunities to observe ND adults in the courts. In one instance an adult assessed as dyslexic and dyspraxic failed to pass the test of sobriety for drivers and this was part of the evidence against him. The doctor at the police station had directed him to bring his finger from a distance to touch his nose; he was also asked to walk along a thin line, placing one foot in front of the other. It only took a few minutes for me to establish that this individual was quite unable to pass these tests under any circumstances. Other cases have demonstrated how stress becomes an additional handicap and mental overload renders someone speechless.