This past weekend, 48 Hours detailed the case of Scott and Janet Pettit, who were found shot dead in their home in 2013. Whoever shot them also set fire to the Pettit’s home.

Police became suspicious of the couple’s son, Brandon, who suffers from Asperger Syndrome (more recently name Autism Spectrum Disorder) and after two interviews arrested him for the murders along with his friend. There is no physical evidence that was linked back to Brandon.

If you have followed me over the years, you have heard me talk about this disorder. It is a disorder where people who suffer from it don’t have the normal social filters like you or I do. They can’t read people like the average person can. They don’t understand social cues nor can they read emotions. To the average person, these people are socially awkward and don’t fit in. They don’t often express normal emotions either. They are typically flat emotionally, and that is normal for them.

Hence, people with Asperger don’t realize when they say things how it can be perceived as “off” or “unusual” or even as a “lie” when they are being honest. It is not uncommon for an Asperger person to say things that make them look suspicious when they aren’t.

For example, you might say to an Asperger patient: Have you thought of killing someone? Most people have casually thought about it or said “Oh, I could just kill her (for doing that)!!”, but won’t admit to something like this in an interview because they didn’t do it seriously — it was a quick anger response that was fleeting. But to an Asperger person–the question is black and white. You either did or you didn’t — and they will confess. They don’t grasp the nuances of it.

If you ask an Asperger person if they went out running errands last night and they went to the Target for say a Starbucks, they may say no. And be totally honest in their mind. Target wasn’t for errands. To them getting a coffee wasn’t an errand. It was getting something to eat or drink. To get an accurate answer out of an Asperger patient, you would have to say did you go to Target? Or did you buy a drink last night? You have to be very clear or things will get confusing fast. You can’t jump to the conclusion they are lying like you would with a normal person.

Overall, people with Asperger syndrome are also very honest–honest to a flaw, however it appears that Brandon liked to make up stories and lie. So he is an extra ordinary case that would require intense study to get to the truth.

If you aren’t familiar with the mindset of this disorder, questioning a person with Asperger syndrome to get the truth is very difficult. You can’t apply the same rules as you do for normal people. I’ve assisted in these cases when I could see major misunderstandings.

My work kept an innocent person out of jail and perhaps prison for life. I believe without question this person would have been convicted if it weren’t able to assist in this case. Thankfully the investigators trusted me and dug much deeper into the case and exposed the real killer, who was convicted.

While there are definite red flags in Brandon’s behavior, until I could view the actual interviews, I am unable to tell you what I believe in this case. For me, it could go either way still. But I do not think Asperger patients should NOT be put into interviews without an expert who understands this disorder to bridge the gaps, or we risk serious harm to them, their families and others, if the wrong person is locked away and the real killer is free to roam!