Forensic Psych Cases

Muller v. Oregon

Limited women to a 10 hour workday after Brandeis showed that working longer harmed women’s health.

Brown v. Board of Education

First used social science research on the effects of segregation and the consequences of desegregation; the research described psychological harm to children of color.

Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals

Admissibility of scientific evidence is determined case by case, based on evidentiary hearings.

United States v. Scheffer

Justice Clarence Thomas expressed concerns about polygraph evidence: there was no consensus about its scientific validity or reliability, and it could unsurp the jury’s role.

United States v. Semrau

A federal court in Tennessee excluded fMRI expert testimony.

Colorado v. Connelly

A confession is “voluntary” unless police use coercive methods to draw it out.

Miranda v. Arizona

Miranda rights include the right to remain silent, the right to have an attorney present, the right to have an attorney appointed if unable to afford one, and acknowledgment that the rights are understood.

State v. Hansen

Banned encouraging unlawful immigration for financial gain does not violate the First Amendment.

Williams, Bazille et al. v. Alioto et al.

Outcome: prevented police from stopping a Black man based on a case profile.

Neil v. Biggers (1972) and Manson v. Brathwaite (1977)

Both cases are associated with the Manson criteria.

Perry v. New Hampshire: Eyewitness evidence was revisited, but the Manson criteria were not updated.

State v. Henderson

Held that the Manson rule does not provide a sufficient reliability measure, does not deter, and overstates juries’ ability to evaluate eyewitness testimony.

State v. Lawson

The prosecution must prove the identification was based on permissible bias.

People v. Lerma

Eyewitness identification is not always reliable.

Maryland v. Craig

Allowed CCTV testimony in child

Dusky v. United States

Established the standard for competency to stand trial (CST), addressing a defendant’s psychological state at the time of trial.

U.S. v. Wilson

Established a flexible standard for competency to stand trial.

Morrow v. Maryland

A memory loss claim alone does not constitute incompetence.

Jackson v. Indiana

The Supreme Court ruled that a state violates due process by indefinitely committing a criminal defendant solely because the defendant is incompetent to stand trial.