Point prevalence of adults with intellectual developmental disorder in forensic psychiatric inpatient services in Ontario, Canada

A significant minority of people with Intellectual Developmental Disorder (IDD) may come into contact with the criminal justice system as a result of criminal behaviours, and many of these who are deemed Unfit to stand trial or Not Criminally Responsible (NCR) will be transferred to forensic psychiatric facilities. Although the perception is that the frequency is increasing, the exact number is unclear, prompting us to conduct a provisional survey of forensic facilities across the province of Ontario to determine (i) point prevalence of IDD and (ii) the characteristics of such individuals. Detainees with IDD were identified in forensic mental health facilities across the Province of Ontario, and information was collected regarding their demographics, characteristics of their index offence and length of stay. We calculated a point prevalence (December 2012) of 19%, and identified that individuals with IDD stayed, on average, longer in these facilities than their non-IDD peers. We argue for the need to set up a working group to begin to address forensic care pathways for adults with IDD