Vol. 8, No. 2, 2002 Page 4
"Well-controlled prospective studies of children with ADHD find that at least 70 percent continue to meet the full diagnostic criteria for the disorder into adolescence. By young adulthood, this population has more academic problems and is more oppositional and delinquent than peer groups. Compared to other young adults, they engage in activities that result in more school suspension, have more adversarial contacts with law enforcement agencies, and are more likely to be admitted into juvenile justice facilities.
"Researchers increasingly identify the development of aggressive behavior during childhood and adolescence as the connecting bond between ADHD, substance abuse, and criminal behavior. While aggression does not represent one of the diagnostic criteria for ADHD, approximately 50 percent of those with ADHD evaluated in clinics progress to a level of aggressive behavior defined by most law enforcement agencies as delinquency."
FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin,
1997, "Attention-deficit/hyperactivity
disorder: implications for the criminal
justice system"