Accidentally Criminal: ADHD, Autism, and True Crime Obsession

On this episode of Clinically Awkward, I sit down with pediatric neuropsychologist Rebecca Fontanetta to talk about criminology through a neurodivergent lens — and why so many of us with ADHD and autism are a little too obsessed with true crime.

We get into Rebecca's tree trunk theory of criminal behavior, why homicidal and suicidal behavior are less separate than most people think, how women offenders are consistently misread, and why neurodivergence in the prison population is far more common than anyone wants to talk about. We also cover autistic traits being misread as guilt, what the media gets wrong about postpartum psychosis, the ethics of true crime consumption, and why law enforcement training desperately needs a neurodivergence chapter.

Rebecca Fontanetta is a pediatric neuropsychologist practicing in New York and Connecticut. Find her at neuropsycholopedia.com and @the_neuropsycholopedia on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.

If you're an adult looking for therapy in New York, find me at alyssazimmerman.com.

00:00 Who Are These Women and Why Are They Like This? 04:15 The Neurodivergent Therapist Pipeline 07:11 The Dark and Twisty Fixation Explained 09:18 The Tree Trunk Theory of Criminal Behavior 15:31 Psychopath Is Not a Diagnosis, Actually 17:29 Father-Daughter Murder Time a Very Normal Hobbies 25:17 Hyperfixation Grief Spiral 26:23 The Perpetrator Nobody Saw Coming 28:57 Undiagnosed, Unsupported, Incarcerated 30:26 "Acting Weird" Is Not Probable Cause, Actually 34:43 Oh, Look What Happened When They Didn't Believe A Woman 37:31 When "Acting Weird" and "Acting Guilty" Look the Same to Law Enforcement 40:33 The Ten Autistic Women Solution: True Crime Ethics 42:11 Your Local Child-Free Auntie Has Some Thoughts