I have a son who I believe is a sociopath but his therapists say he's too young to be diagnosed as one.  He is now 13 and has been out of our home for over two years.  I had him arrested for molesting my daughter for which he has never shown remorse.  Where can I get more information on this subject and more pressing help for him?  I am despairing and have tried to kill myself and almost succeeded and once again am suicidal as he has molested kids where he's at and had anal intercourse with a 15 year old.  He also loves to torment animals.
Thanks, P.

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Hello, Paula, do not despair. You are not guilty for what your son has become. No one know what are the causes of sociopathy and unfortunately our society is not prepared to deal with dangerous sociopaths like your son seems to be. Unfortunately, also, there are no effective treatments for this. His therapist is right, at least theoretically: a definite diagnosis, according to the psychiatric manuals, is reached only after 15 years of age. Personally I think that this is too rigid and a dogmatic criterion, and since your son shows the main symptoms of the DSM-IV classification scale, you should demand a definite diagnosis by a board of forensic psychiatrists. He will probably commit a felony or a crime soon, and will be arrested for a long time and dealt with the prison and youth correction system for the dangerous. All this is very sad, but if he really gets a diagnosis of violent sociopathy you and your family should keep maximum distance from him and his destiny, otherwise it is deemed to be destroyed, too.
Best of luck
Prof. Renato M.E. Sabbatini
Medicine/UNICAMP