Forensic psych midterm

Compensatory damages

compensating for the damages suffered by the plaintiff

punitive damages

punishing the defendant for his behavior

civil law

disputes between individuals, organization

Ex) divorce, child custody, landlord/tenant disputes

In civil court, there is “preponderance of evidence” which is

the burden of proof falls on the plaintiff

The jury in civil court

doesn’t have to be unanimous

Either party in civil court

can appeal

criminal law

deals with crime and legal punishment of criminal offenses

Ex) theft, assault, robbery, murder

In criminal court, there is “beyond a reasonable doubt” which means

burden of proof is always on the government

Criminal court can result in

incarcerations, fines, death penalty

In criminal court, cases are filed by

government

In civil law, cases are filed by

private party

In criminal law, only the

defendant can appeal

In criminal law, the jury has

to make a unanimous decison

Mens rea (guilty mind)

suggests the culpability or blameworthiness of a defendant that the individual who committed a crime did that willfully or purposefully

Plaintiff

the injured person

Ex) you chopped down my tree

Defendant

person responsible for the injury

Ex) person that chopped down my tree

tort

method of resolving disputes

4 elements of tort

duty or obligation, violation of that duty, damages resulted from the violation of that duty, proximate cause of the damages was the violation

felony

more serious crimes, State v John Smith, anything over 1 year to death, sentence is served in prison

misdemeanor

less serious crimes, City v John Smith, 1 year or less sentence, served in jail

clinical assessment

Scope: broad

Importance of client’s perspective: subjective is better 

Voluntariness: voluntary 

Objectives: defined by client and provider 

Relationship and dynamics: therapeutic 

Pace and setting: Leisurely 

Forensic assessment

Scope: narrow

Importance of client’s perspective: objective is better…do they meet the criteria, yes or no? 

Voluntariness: involuntary 

Objectives: insanity evaluations, every state has their own definition of what competent state looks like 

Relationship and dynamics: neutral 

Pace and setting: court date deadlines 

legal person or “individual”

I make my life what it is, rugged individualism, individual achievement, individual responsibility

psychological person or “contextual individual”

I have changed and will be changing, a lot of things have impacted me, family, situational biographical, historical

My life is shaped by numerous factors both within and beyond our control

Making Law modern

a legal system that incorporates:

contemporary contextual

situational

social-psychological model of behavior

The ‘truth’ in law

will be revealed as a result of these two sides doing their best

Law is

authoritative, based on precedents or the principle, a brick

psychology is more

dynamic, more low

stare decesis

judges use this to justify certain court decision to previous rulings by a higher court in the same type of case

the purpose of stare decisis

is to promote consistent, predictable rulings on cases of similiar nature

parens patriae (parent of the country)

state/government has a responsibility to the people to provide care for the citizens who are unable to care for themselves

police power

state has an obligation to protect the public from any power

civil commitment

involuntary hospitalization of mentally ill individuals

In history, people were confined

for the safety of the public and not for well-being

asylums became long-term homes for

chronic patients— restraint, sedation, experimental treatments

Not effective in curing patients

“need for treatment” meant

“dangerousness” to self or others became the sole reason someone would be committed

deinstitutionalization

moving people with mental health disorders out of psychiatric hospitals and into community-based care settings

Assisted (not really) Outpatient Treatment

unlikely to survive, lack of compliance, unlikely to voluntarily participate in treatment

A competent person has a 14th Amendment due to process liberty interest to

decline unwanted medical treatment, including life-sustaning procedures

voluntariness

must be made of the person’s own free will

disclosure

all relevant information to making the decision must be presented

Ex) side effects, alternative treatments must be presented

When disclosure takes place, a person is…

informed

capacity

person’s mental ability to understand the legal or other consequences of the actions in question

incapacity

conclusion when someone is found not guilty of a crime due to “insanity”

right to adequate care

basic medical and mental health treatment

least restrictive environment

settings that support personal liberty and use the least intrusive methods necessary

treatment plans

an individual written treatment plan and the right to understand their diagnosis and care options

right to refuse treatment

competent adults outside of strict emergency or court ordered situations have the right to refuse medication or specific care

inability to meet basic needs

inability (or unwillingness) to meet essential survival needs— food, clothing, shelter, vital medical care— due to illness

There is a rise in prison beds

because there is a decrease in psychiatric beds

People were sent to prison for mental illness

On July 24, 2025 the President issued an Executive Order

sanctioning long-term institutionalization of unhoused people living with mental illness

purpose: urges states to expand civil commitment laws

Reduces funds for Housing First programs

Dangerous (to self or others) and how to assess

immediate decisions if the patient is presented for admission, may be uncooperative, no available records

Assisted (not really) outpatient treatment

unlikely to voluntarily participate in treatment, unlikely to survive safely, history of lack of compliance, unlikely to voluntarily participate in treatment, “you NEED TREATMENT and you are going to benefit from it”

subject variables (false confessions that can help juries)

certain vulnerabilities that can increase the chance of a person giving a false confession

Ex) 17 years old and below, medical conditions, cognitive condition, level of education, sophistication regarding police procedures

system variables (false confessions that can help juries)

certain environments/situations that can increase the chance of an individual giving a false confession

Ex) threat of physical violence, length of questioning, in isolation, uncomfortable physical conditions of the interview

REID technique (ACCUSATORY)

1) pre interrogation interview (non accusatory, gathering info)

2) Miranda waiver

3) Interrogation— NO LONGER WRITING ANYTHING DOWN UNTIL THEY HAVE A CONFESSION

4) FULL NARRATIVE CONFESSION

Processes in REID technique

1) breaking down denials and resistance

2) increasing the suspect’s desire to confess

PEACE model

determining relevant facts, interviews are encouraged to be fair and open minded and to pursue true information

Mendez principles

combination of accusatory and information gathering

rooted in science, law, and ethics, comprehensive, specialized training for interviewers, addressing specific needs of vulnerable people, rapport-based interviewing

HUMINT = human intelligence

used by the Army

“Fear up”: gearing up, harden the approach

“Fear down”: soften the approach when the interrogatee is about to let their guard down

interrogations, reconnaissance, espionage, report building and non-coercive methods

uses behavior analysis

“If they’re lying, they’re looking down”

2 major problems of Reid technique

1) one goal of the interview is to tell if the people being interviewed is telling the truth or not

2) people are notoriously bad at making this determination

3) guilt is assumed prior to the start of the interrogation

4) determination of legal guilt often is on information derived from the integration

false confessions make for…

leading cause of wrongful convictions in homicide cases

miranda rights must be…

read and must be made “voluntarily, knowingly, and intelligently”

Arizona v Miranda (1963)

detective coerced and lied to Miranda about evidence, only evidence was confession, instituted further protection of 5th and 6th amendmight rights

Berghuis v. thompkins (2010)

ruled in the case that a defendant HAD TO EXPLICITLY STATE HIS OR HER DESIRE TO REMAIN SILENT in order to be protected against self-incrimination

types of lies can police legally tell a suspect in custody to try and facilitate their confession

intrinsic misrepresentations and extrinsic misrepresentations

intrinsic misrepresentations

lies that relate to a suspect’s connection to the crime

Ex) discovery of the murder weapon, claim that the murder victim is still alive, physical evidence linked to the victim found in the defendant’s car

extrinsic misrepresentations

those that have nothing to do with the suspect’s connection to the crime but attempt to distort his ability to make a rational choice about confessing

Ex) promises of mental health treatment in exchange for a confession, assurances of divine salvation upon confession

When do you get mirandized

1) suspect is “in custody”

2) they are being interrogated

5th amendment

1) right to a jury trial

2) protection against double jeopardy (being convicted twice for the same offense)

3) protection against self incrimination

4) right to fair trial

5) protection against the taking of property by the government without compensation

6th amendment

1) rights to a fast and public trial by an impartial jury

2) aware of criminal charges

3) confront witnesses during the trial

4) to have witnesses appear in the trial

5) right to legal representation

3 types of pleas

traditional guilty, no-contest guilty, Alford pleas

traditional guilty pleas

by default, are admitting responsiility

no-contest guilty pleas

defendants neither admit nor deny guilt

“just saying okay”

Alford pleas

defendants profess their innocence while pleading guilty

when you plead guilty you usually waive your rights to…

appeal the conviction, to a trial, to confront your accusers

May be able to withdraw your plea before sentencing IF you can show good cause…

Didn’t understand the charges

plea was not made knowingly, voluntarily, or intelligently

under the influence of medication or suffering from mental illness

trial judge violated procedural rules during the plea collloquy

speciality courts have

specifically trained judges and prosecutors, judicial monitoring, linkages to services

Specialty courts are meant to

“help offenders address the underlying social and mental problems that led to their legal travails

Ex) drug treatment courts, mental health courts

5 elements of specialty courts

1) immediate intervention

2) non adversarial judicial process— judge, defense attorney, mental health providers to work toward same goal

3) intensive interactions— not one size fits all

4) interdisciplinary team approach

5) clearly defined rules and goals