Legal and Psychological Aspects of Violence, Risk Assessment, and Criminal Justice

Parens patriae powers

Legal authority allowing states to confine sexually violent predators after prison for public safety and treatment.

Kansas v. Hendricks (1997)

Supreme Court decision upholding civil commitment of sexually violent predators as constitutional.

Megan's Law

Requires public notification of registered sex offenders living in a community.

Violence and severe mental illness

Most people with severe mental illness are not violent; risk increases mainly with substance abuse or severe symptoms.

Future dangerousness; Barefoot v. Estelle (1983)

Allowed expert testimony predicting a defendant's future dangerousness in death penalty cases.

Tarasoff v. Regents of the University of California

Established a therapist's duty to warn or protect identifiable victims when a client makes credible threats.

Involuntary civil commitment vs. criminal confinement

Civil commitment is based on mental illness and dangerousness; criminal confinement is punishment after conviction.

Rates of antisocial personality disorder

About 1% in general population vs. about 50% in incarcerated populations.

Psychopathy characteristics

Traits including lack of empathy, superficial charm, manipulativeness, impulsivity, and chronic antisocial behavior.

Methods of risk assessment

Clinical judgment, actuarial tools, and structured professional judgment (SPJ).

Historical markers

Past factors such as prior violence or early criminal behavior.

Dynamic markers

Changeable factors like symptoms, stress, or substance use.

Risk-management markers

Future situational factors such as supervision or access to weapons.

Jurors' reactions to risk-assessment evidence

Jurors often overestimate the accuracy and scientific reliability of risk predictions.

Factors in sentencing decisions

Crime severity, prior record, guidelines, judge discretion, and offender/victim characteristics.

United States v. Booker (2005)

Made federal sentencing guidelines advisory, not mandatory.

Mandatory sentencing laws

Require fixed minimum prison sentences.

Solitary confinement

Isolation for 22-24 hours a day with minimal human contact.

Goals of punishment

Retribution, deterrence, incapacitation, rehabilitation, and restitution.

Restorative justice approach

Focuses on repairing harm through offender accountability and victim/community involvement.

National and international incarceration rates

The U.S. has one of the highest incarceration rates in the world.

Racial and gender disparities in incarceration rates

People of color and men are incarcerated at disproportionately higher rates; women's incarceration is increasing.

Prisonization

The process of adapting to prison norms and behaviors.

Criminogenic effect

When prison experiences increase the likelihood of future criminal behavior.

Problems with private prisons

Profit motives encourage cost-cutting, poor conditions, and incentives to keep incarceration high.

Alternatives to incarceration

Probation, diversion programs, treatment courts, electronic monitoring, and community service.

Furman v. Georgia (1972)

Struck down the death penalty due to arbitrary and inconsistent sentencing.

Bifurcated capital trial

Two-phase trial: guilt phase and penalty phase.

Gregg v. Georgia (1976)

Reinstated the death penalty with guided discretion procedures.

Atkins v. Virginia (2002)

Banned executions of individuals with intellectual disabilities.

Roper v. Simmons (2005)

Banned executions of people who committed their crimes under age 18.

Baze v. Rees (2008)

Upheld lethal injection as constitutional.

Glossip v. Gross (2015)

Reaffirmed that lethal injection protocols do not violate the Eighth Amendment.

Death-qualified jury characteristics

More punitive, more conviction-prone, and less diverse.

Lockhart v. McCree (1986)

Allowed exclusion of jurors who oppose the death penalty.

Racial disparities in death sentences

Death sentences are more likely when victims are white; Black defendants face higher risk.

Brutalization effect

Executions may increase homicide rates by normalizing state violence.

Liebman et al. (2000) study

Found about 68% of death sentences were reversed due to serious errors.

Police response to mental health crises

Police often respond first but lack specialized training.

Alternative response approaches

CIT teams, co-responder models, and non-police crisis response teams like CAHOOTS.

Public opinion regarding police accountability

Most Americans support reforms such as body cameras and independent oversight.

Mental health of law enforcement officers

High rates of stress, PTSD, depression, and suicide.

Types of deadly police force

Firearms, chokeholds, tasers used lethally, and vehicle force.

Police excessive force factors

Perceived threat, high civilian gun ownership, bias, and lack of accountability.

Ways to reduce excessive police force

De-escalation training, body cameras, early intervention systems, alternative responders, and civilian oversight.