Facilitated communication techniques rely on the presence of a "communication partner or facilitator" providing physical assistance to people with learning disabilities to enable them to communicate by means of key-, letter-, or picture boards. This support is said to overcome psychoemotional or neurophysiological problems that affect communication. The methods have been widely used with children with autism; and with such support, it is claimed that many are now communicating and producing written language of such complexity as to challenge commonly held beliefs about the language of people diagnosed as autistic or significantly intellectually impaired. The case study examined in this paper involved a young girl with autism making accusations of abuse against family members. There are guidelines investigators can use to determine whether accusations made through a communication facilitator are trustworthy. First, determine whether the level of communication exhibited by the child under facilitated conditions is commensurate with the child's skill level in any other area. Second, determine whether the concepts expressed by the child are appropriate for his/her social and educational background. Third, determine whether there is evidence of generalization of the skills exhibited in facilitated sessions to unprompted settings where similar equipment is available. Fourth, determine whether there is evidence that the client involved is unduly suggestible. Finally, determine whether there are any other circumstances that might have prompted accusations of abuse at this time. 26 references