Decriminalize Developmental Disabilities

The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.

-Socrates

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Welcome to the Decriminalize Developmental Disabilities website

We advocate for reforming the criminal justice system to better address the needs of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities like Autism. The current system often fails to understand and accommodate their unique challenges, leading to harmful prosecutions without public benefit.

Our goal is to make changes that will save these individuals from the unnecessary cruelty the criminal justice system is putting them through. Implementing this goal will require educating legislators, prosecutors and judges about this population and their need to be understood and provided education, rather than prosecuted, by the legal system.

We are a non-profit 501(c)3 parent advocacy organization, nonpolitical and nonsectarian.

Read about our mission, vision, and values here.

bronze statue of lady justice holding the scales

Our Work

Learn more about the work we’ve been doing since 2019.