Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Mitigation of Criminal Responsibility?

Neuroscientific findings have established that brain injury due to trauma (TBI) and brain immaturity of adolescents result in a diminished self-control and therefore are considered mitigations of criminal culpability in forensic settings. This article presents neuroscientific evidence which documents that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) also results in diminished capacity for self-control because of impaired brain functioning. Therefore, it proposes that impaired brain functioning in ADHD should be considered a mitigation by the same logic that impaired brain functioning in TBI and the immature brain functioning in adolescents are considered mitigations. Recommendations for implementing this proposal in forensic practice are presented.