At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, a teenager from Perth named Joshua inadvertently set off one of Western Australia’s largest public health data breaches. This shocking act of violence rocked the already traumatized community. For Joshua, who is autistic, that lands him in an experience that exposed private hospital details. This went as far as releasing patient and staff names, contact information, and direct messages internally.
Joshua, driven by his passion for coding and technology, hacked sensitive personal data. He then released it as a 400-page online tome. Despite the severity of the breach, law enforcement officials opted not to charge him, recognizing the unique circumstances surrounding his actions. Now 20 years old, Joshua looks back on that fateful incident with deep remorse. He regrets that he didn’t come to the decision makers in a more responsible way.
The Breach and Its Fallout
Joshua’s initial curiosity in technology and coding turned into an obsession that had him reaching a point that was the breach. At the height of the pandemic, digital tools and information were essential. Joshua’s actions eventually resulted in a serious violation of patient privacy. He designed a site that aggregated that sensitive info. With many of those incidences involving public health institutions, it has raised serious alarms about data security in these organizations.
Although the consequences of his actions could have been catastrophic, Joshua experienced no criminal charges for his actions. The detectives who initially worked the case have remained in contact with him. Unlike the average police officer, they know best how to interact with an autistic person in this type of scenario.
“But when you take into account the impediments and the impairments to this person’s level of functioning — their intellectual deficits — that would be manifestly unjust. So it is a balancing exercise.” – Magistrate Elaine Campione
As Magistrate Elaine Campione points out, it’s a tricky balance between accountability and compassion. This approach is especially important in criminal cases involving defendants with developmental disabilities.
Understanding the Autistic Experience
Although Joshua’s case is extreme, it underscores the risks autistic people can encounter in the justice system. Tom Oliver, a leading autism researcher, makes an important observation. Scott elaborates that most autistic people who commit crimes do so because of their social naivety and misjudgement. Autistic people often develop deep and consuming interests and may pursue activities as a result that they do not fully understand the consequences of.
“Criminal behaviour among autistic people is often a result of social naivety and general misunderstanding,” – Tom Oliver
Joshua indicated himself that he felt like he was operating under some sort of innocent until proven guilty premise by noting that this was just a passion project. He missed just how dangerous an event he had created at that moment in time.
“It was just a passion project … I didn’t realise what the problem was.” – Joshua
He accepts that his failure to demonstrate conventional empathy or remorse may have led him to harsher punishment. Had legal action been taken, those consequences potentially might have been much more severe.
“Some may struggle to outwardly express typical signs of empathy or remorse, which can ultimately result in a harsher sentence if the matter proceeds to court,” – Joshua
Life After the Breach
Now in his twenties, Joshua has transformed his early fascination with technology into a successful career. He works as a senior cyber defense investigator for a cybersecurity firm. It’s this unique experience, traversing a mess of a situation that has left him with ideas that no one else would ever think to offer. He’s just lucky no criminal or civil interests chose to charge him. He is still deeply ashamed of his own response to the situation.
Looking back on the whole experience, Joshua says he could have done things differently.
“I should’ve spoken to the authorities straight away,” – Joshua
Joshua’s case is an opportunity to show a better way to approach justice for people with autism. As Magistrate Campione highlighted, despite the need for accountability, it should come with a recognition of the individual situation.
“At the end of the day, though, just because they have a diagnosis of an impairment, it does not mean that they are not punished or not held accountable.” – Magistrate Elaine Campione
His story is a valuable reminder of the importance of communication. It highlights the need for advocacy and help for those on the autism spectrum, especially when they encounter the law.
