Crime and ADHD are sadly linked. However, it does not have to be this way. There is a way to end the ADHD-to-prison pipeline. If we address ADHD in the criminal justice system and in the rest of the world, we can reduce crime and create more positive outcomes for those with ADHD.

A quarter of the prison population has ADHD, and ADHD has been linked to re-offending. What is it that makes ADHD so common in criminals? Are there similarities between ADHDers and criminals? Structurally, speaking there is.

In November, I published a blog post in which I said that marijuana should not be used to treat ADHD. I have not switched my opinion on that. However, while researching for the second edition of ADHD Talks, I realized that it was not as black and white as I once thought. In fact, it is quite gray (Do you like how this blog post’s featured image is a grayscale version of my previous blog post? That was intentional because of how this issue isn’t black and white; it’s gray. I thought it was clever). As of right now, I do not know if marijuana is a safe effective treatment for ADHD, but it could be.

Marijuana is being legalized in some areas for both medicinal and recreational purposes. There is some debate on the internet about whether or not it should be used in an ADHD management plan. I was recently asked on Facebook what my thoughts were about marijuana use for those with ADHD. To be honest, I had never considered it much. It is not legal where I live (South Dakota), so I have never desired to use it or whether or not it could help with my ADHD. That does not mean it is something that is not important to discuss, however. It appears as though marijuana will continue to be legalized in many places, and it remains to be seen what the long-term implications of legalization will be.

One of the saddest facts about ADHD is that it increase the likelihood a person will commit a crime. That is not to say that everyone with ADHD will become a criminal. Many people with ADHD do not commit crimes, but there is an increase likelihood of criminal behaviors in persons with ADHD.

There are several areas in which to examine a connection between crime and ADHD: How prevalent is crime among those with ADHD, why ADHDers are more prone to commit crimes than others, and how to prevent ADHDers from committing crimes.