Young people referred to secure residential accommodation often present with a multitude of adverse childhood experiences and it is frequently these dysfunctional backgrounds that prove to be the instigators of their severely disruptive and antisocial behavior. This article describes the life-events of one young man referred to a specialist secure unit for juveniles. The article highlights the influence of childhood maltreatment on the acquisition of delinquent behavior, while also acknowledging the additional contributory factors on the pathway to serious crime. Analysis was carried out using the multiple sequential functional analysis technique. This analysis looks at the relationship between an individual and his or her environment. Functional analysis does not assume causality. It merely suggests that a functional relationship or association between events may result from their order of occurrence. Tables, figure, references