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"This case involves a misdiagnosis of a rare condition."

That's probably it. Here's the description of Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome from National Library of Medicine (part of National Institutes of Health):

A potentially fatal syndrome associated primarily with the use of neuroleptic agents (see ANTIPSYCHOTIC AGENTS) which are in turn associated with dopaminergic receptor blockade (see RECEPTORS, DOPAMINE) in the BASAL GANGLIA and HYPOTHALAMUS, and sympathetic dysregulation. Clinical features include diffuse MUSCLE RIGIDITY; TREMOR; high FEVER; diaphoresis; labile blood pressure; cognitive dysfunction; and autonomic disturbances. Serum CPK level elevation and a leukocytosis may also be present. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p1199; Psychiatr Serv 1998 Sep;49(9):1163-72)

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/cgi/mesh/2007/MB_cgi

(Capitals in original.)

Those are the symptoms that show up in regular people if they have this adverse reaction to these meds. Obviously if a person is already autistic and has an adverse reaction to these meds, the reaction will present different symptoms. But that's got to be way, way down in the fine print (if it's even known) of the contraindications they publish for the docs, since it's a rare reaction to a rare condition. It's entirely possible that this medication wasn't tested on very many (or possibly any) autistic people before it was released, if it's not labeled to treat autism.

This is obviously an example of a case that was poorly managed. But I don't think it should be used to indict the more commonly used psych meds in general. The indictment of the pharm companies basically bribing docs to push the latest stuff is probably warranted, that's a practice that is pretty ethically dubious.

Personally, other than antibiotics, I try to talk my docs, if I need a prescription, into giving me something that's been on the market long enough to be generic, on the theory that enough people have taken it so these kind of bugs are already worked out. (Antibiotics is a whole other topic, where some of the bacteria have adapted to the older meds, so other decision strategies are called for.)