A teenager accused of animal cruelty has an IQ of 133, and a keen interest in calculus, quantum physics, and high-end mathematics, a court has heard.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The ACT Childrens Court has also heard the boy, who cannot be named, has experienced homicidal fantasies since pre-school.
The teen has spent months in custody, but has pleaded not guilty.
The details of the alleged offending cannot be reported.
The boy's legal team has applied for bail, arguing he could be supported in the community under a mental health treatment order.
But the prosecution has opposed his release, with conflicting psychiatric reports at odds over his mental health and potential danger to the community.
Forensic psychiatrist John Kasinathan, who is experienced with adolescents in the criminal justice system, has been treating the boy since earlier this year.
He has diagnosed the boy with Asperger's syndrome, a disorder on the autism spectrum, and "probable psychopathic traits".
The court heard the boy experienced homicidal fantasies for years, but, because of his intelligence, was likely able to disguise his condition.
He told Dr Kasinathan he experienced the fantasies as early as age four or five when, at pre-school, he imagined driving a pencil into a woman's brain.
But the doctor said courses of medication since his arrest had completely quelled the youth's fantasies.
Dr Kasinathan said the boy's mental dysfunction could well improve over time, and assessed him as a low risk of harm if treated properly with cross-agency support.
Testing revealed the boy has an IQ score of 133, better than 99.5 per cent of the population.
The doctor said such a high IQ in a person with an autism-spectrum disorder was "as rare as hen's teeth".
"And to see it in an adolescent within a forensic context is rarer still," he said.
The report from Therapy ACT has questioned whether the boy suffered from an autism disorder or Asperger's.
The bail application continues.