One characteristic of ADD is an improper thought censor, has anybody used this as defense in sexual harassment

Question

I was reading that the inability to censor thoughts before speaking was a characteristic of ADD. I am wondering if anybody has used this as a defense in a sexual harrassment lawsuit? What was the outcome?

Answer 1

I did a little research but didn't come up with anything on specific court cases. I am sure it has been tried -- people will try any sort of excuse, if they have no better options left to them.

In general, the typical precedent here is that people are always responsible for their actions.

(Note the whole Andrea Yates thing -- she was obviously suffering schizophrenic breaks from reality and the largest precursor to her crime of killing her children had been the fact that her doctor took away her medication... and the jury still found her guilty in the first trial.)

Since ADD is a treatable disorder and is clinically observable, and because the patient is usually aware of their behavior, they are considered responsible for whatever they do. Just as the "I was intoxicated and didn't know what I was doing" defense won't fly, neither will the "I've got ADD and am prone to compulsive sexual harrassment of women."

But I'll speak from personal experience. One of my sons is diagnosed with ADHD, and the "I can't control myself" defense doesn't fly in our house either.

The deal is that he is so aware of outside stimulations that he can't prioritize what he focuses on. The medication "wakes up" the part of his brain that allows him to mentally focus on one thing at a time. We've had variable results with the medication over the years.

Yes, he is vulnerable to the behavior you suggest. He can be loud, extraverted, stop thinking about the result of his actions, be very insensitive to others once he "gets on a roll," and doesn't even seem to notice how he's hurting someone's feelings.

But some of that has been under his control. He DOES regulate his own behavior -- it's just easier for him to get caught up in what he's saying or doing and not think about the ramifications on others. So he IS responsible for what he does and says.

Likewise, we've had to work with him to sense that when other people are mad at him, he needs to stop and think about why they are mad rather than just getting more aggressive and defensive. If everyone is mad, it means there's a problem; and he needs to review his behavior and find a different way of doing things.

A guy who habitually sexually harrasses women, especially after they've already made their discomfort known, is not taking control of his behavior as much as he could be. Even if he's still prone to blurt out stupid things without thinking, if he was concerned, he would take the complaints seriously enough to review what's been happening and ask for outside advice on what to do in order that everyone would feel better, if he cared to do so.

Yes, the ADD makes it harder for him to get a grip, but that's not an excuse, and he has some control over how to deal with it.