Asperger's Syndrome Not Linked To Killings In Newtown

It has been more than a week since the massacre of 20 children, and six adults took place in Newtown, Conn. As the time has passed, and people around the world are mourning the lives lost, answers continue to be sought, and new details revealed, though many questions still remain unanswered.

Much is still unclear about the shooter, who originally was reported as Ryan Lanza, but was later apparently identified as Adam Lanza, age 20, Ryan Lanza's younger sibling (click here for the original article by The Alternative Press), a resident of Newtown.

Adam Lanza reportedly died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after taking the other lives that day.

Ryan Lanza of Hoboken, N.J. was interviewed by police right after the shooting, and according to news sources, was released as a suspect. Reports also indicate Ryan Lanza said he has been estranged from his brother since 2010, and Adam Lanza dealt with Asperger's syndrome, and personality disorders.

 According to Wikipedia, Asperger syndrome (abbreviated as "AS," and also known as "Asperger's syndrome, and "Asperger disorder," is "an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) that is characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction, alongside restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior and interests. It differs from other autism spectrum disorders by its relative preservation of linguistic and cognitive development. Although not required for diagnosis, physical clumsiness and atypical (peculiar, odd) use of language are frequently reported."

Reports in the media, especially a December 22 Associated Press article, have noted Adam Lanza rarely spoke publicly, typically wore the same outfit to school, pushed himself next to walls as other students would pass him in the hallways at school, and, even during a presentation at school, permitted his computer to speak for him, rather than presenting the material himself.

The same article alleges Adam Lanza had an obsession with computers, and was often sequestered in the family's basement room, which was equipped with couches, a flat-screen TV, computer, and video games. A former classmate of Lanza's in high school said Lanza once played the video game "Counter-Strike" with him, a game featuring terrorists, and counter-terrorists, and chose a military assault rifle and Glock to use during the game (a Glock 10 mm handgun, and a Bushmaster AR-15 were purportedly two of the weapons used by Lanza during the killings).

Adam Lanza's mother, Nancy Lanza, who was reportedly the first victim of the December 14 killing spree, is said to be the registered owner of all of the weapons used by Adam Lanza in the slaughter. Reports from ABC News indicate as well, Nancy Lanza directed Adam Lanza's steps in life in diffierent instances; a former babysitter has now come forward stating Nancy Lanza told him to never let Adam Lanza out of his sight when caring for him, requesting he not even use the bathroom when watching the boy. Hairstylists who used to cut Adam Lanza's hair every six weeks when he was a teenager, said his mother would always accompany him on the appointments, and instruct Adam Lanza when he was permitted to move in the chair; according to the stylist, he never uttered a word, and only stared at the floor tiles as they cut his hair.

 The Alternative Press interviewed Johnny Regan, a Sussex County resident, who was diagnosed as an adult with Asperger's syndrome in 1999. Previous to that, Regan, who said he is also a cancer survivor (a blood disorder, which he is now cancer free from for seven years), was told he was "neurologically impaired," before the Asperger's diagnosis. However, Regan has been able to hold down a job, including having worked 17 baseball seasons at Skylands Park as a scoreboard operator. Regan is also very involved in the Sussex County NJ Sports Hall of Fame (click here for a previous article by The Alternative Press), as the group's historian. At the recent induction dinner, he introduced one of the speakers from the podium, and spoke to many of the attendees during the evening.

Coincidentally, when The Alternative Press of Sussex County released the first article about the shooting in Newtown, Regan was a reader who reached back when a request for comment was posted on Facebook looking for comments about the tragedy, and indicated a friend of his lives in Newtown, Conn. When Regan first heard of the shooting, he said he immediately called his friend to check on his well-being, and learned his friend was safe, and, the friend's children were as well; they were too young to attend Sandy Hook Elementary School. Click here for the story.

Of the possibility of Adam Lanza having Asperger's syndrome, Regan commented, about the link some news outlets have attempted to make between Adam Lanza's supposed issues with Asperger's, and the violence committed. "It doesn't apply to everybody."

 "The chilling fact is you don't have to be mentally ill to be violent," Cherney said. "There's nothing definitive between Asperger's, or any other disorder. It's a myth."

Cherney described Asperger's syndrome as, "sustained impairment in social interaction that starts in youth. It's one of the defining features."

Cherney said another defining feature can be the "restricted range of activity. They [those with Asperger's] can be acutely interested in certain subjects and goals with great intensity. Restricted focused activities are a hallmark."

This can create disturbances, and difficulties, from work and especially in the relationship domain, in which those with Asperger's may have difficulty interpreting non-behavioral cues, and gestures, which, in turn, can impact the development of peer relationships.

 "Categorical schemes don't try to capture reality, where intensity or spectrum can shade one into the other," Cherney said. "This has created diagnostic disputes, and it's not settled."

The fourth edition of the DSM, the "DSM-IV," was published in 1994. Of the revision of the newest manual, and, who decides what is kept, and what is axed, according to the American Psychiatric Association's DSM-5 website, the planning stages for the upcoming version started in 1999; and between 2006 and 2008, the co-chairs to help bring about the revised manual were chosen, as well the task and work groups formed. Since then, field trials, and tests have taken place, and the draft put together.

The DSM-5 draft manual is scheduled for printing on December 31, and is planned for unveiling at the American Psychiatric Association's annual meeting in San Francisco, Calif., in May 2013.

In regard to the building process of the manual, Cherney said, "They [the creators] land somewhere by consensus in the building process. It doesn't mean everyone is in favor."

Wikipedia notes Asperger's syndrome was named by Hans Asperger, an Austrian pediatrician, in 1944, to describe four of his patients. The children had difficulties socializing, which Asperger called "autistic psychopathy." Yet, he also said his patients were "little professors," for their high intellectual abilities, and potential for achievement in their adulthoods.