RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Behavioral Variant of Frontotemporal Dementia and Homicide in a Historical Case
JF Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online
JO J Am Acad Psychiatry Law
FD American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law
SP 219
OP 227
DO 10.29158/JAAPL.200081-20
VO 49
IS 2
A1 Stefano Zago
A1 Cristina Scarpazza
A1 Teresa Difonzo
A1 Andrea Arighi
A1 Dounia Hajhajate
A1 Yvan Torrente
A1 Giuseppe Sartori
YR 2021
UL http://jaapl.org/content/49/2/219.abstract
AB Criminal behavior is a clinical feature of the behavioral variant of frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), ranging from socially inappropriate behavior and minor offenses (such as shoplifting, driving-related violations, housebreaking, trespassing) to the more extreme acts of sex crimes and violence. To our knowledge, no homicide case involving bvFTD is well illustrated in the scientific literature, and only a few anecdotal annotations are available about bvFTD and homicide. This is surprising considering the inclination of individuals with bvFTD to lack impulse control, to manifest disinhibition, to display diminished emotional awareness and loss of empathy, and to show behavior indicative of disordered moral reasoning. Here, we describe the 19th-century homicide case of Benjamin Reynaud, a man whose clinical characteristics suggest the bvFTD diagnosis. Reynaud's case may represent a rare instance of homicide committed by an individual with bvFTD and provide a basis for some reflections regarding the relationship between homicidal behavior and bvFTD.