FORENSIC EVALUATION SERVICES
Competency to Stand Trial
According to the U.S. constitution, an individual may not be tried for a crime without being competent to stand trial. Our psychologists have completed many competency to stand trial evaluations.
Criminal Responsibility or Mental State at the Time of the Offense (“MSO”)
Understanding an individual’s state of mind at the time a crime was allegedly committed is often relevant to the ultimate disposition of the case in a court of law. MSO evaluations include those that pertain to insanity evaluations, evaluations for an opinion on the suitability of a guilty but mentally ill finding, and evaluations pertaining to issues such as extreme emotional distress, self-defense, and duress.
Competency to Waive Miranda Rights
In certain circumstances, it is necessary to understand whether an individual made a confession to a crime in a knowing, intelligent, and voluntary manner. Evaluations of competency to waive Miranda rights involve review of the educational history of the individual, assessment of existing psychiatric, neurodevelopmental, or neurocognitive disorders, a specific assessment of the individual's knowledge of Miranda rights and reasoning with respect to waiver of those rights, and an assessment of the interrogation process that took place in the individual’s specific case.
Disability Evaluations
In the civil forensic area, we often conduct disability evaluations. There are several contexts in which these evaluations may be useful and necessary. For example, in the vocational rehabilitation of individuals with neurodevelopmental disabilities (Autism Spectrum Disorder, Intellectual Disability) or severe mental illness, services may be necessary to determine how and in what ways an individual’s conditions may affect employability and the extent to which supportive services are necessary. Also, we often conduct evaluations for disability determination agencies, providing input to assist in making decisions about eligibility for Social Security benefits (SSI, SSDI). Finally, we conduct evaluations in worker’s compensation cases.
Pardon Board Assessments
From time to time, we are asked to provide assessments for Pardon Boards. These assessments generally focus on understanding an individual’s prior criminal history, on identifying the rehabilitative efforts and success an individual has achieved, and on providing a prognosis for desistance from criminal activity in the future.
Sentencing
An individual’s state of mind at the time a crime is committed may be relevant at sentencing. These evaluations are not intended to excuse or justify a person’s actions. Rather, they are meant to provide a better understanding of the circumstances under which a crime was committed, along with identifying the factors and conditions that may have played a role. Sentencing evaluations can help in identifying mitigating factors, those that may reduce culpability for a crime or suggest appropriate rehabilitative measures. They may also identify aggravating factors, those what suggest enhancements to penalties.
Suicide and Violence Risk
Risk assessment is relevant in many clinical and forensic scenarios. For example, when contemplating the release of an individual from a psychiatric hospital, it is important to understand whether the patient may be at risk of suicide in the period subsequent to discharge. The individual may need to stay in the hospital or may need special services or supports at the time of release. The same may be true for someone who is feared to be at risk of violence at a future time. As another example, courts, agencies, or professionals in charge of supervising individuals who have been convicted of sexual offenses may want to know if an individual is at an elevated risk of committing another sexual offense in the future and what services are necessary to prevent re-offending. For these reasons, we offer psychosexual assessments and sex offender risk assessments of adolescents and adults.
Amenability and Reverse Amenability
Depending on the laws in a given state, individuals under the age of majority (“juveniles”) who are accused of serious crimes may be charged as adults. When that happens, they may be tried as adults and receive punishments similar to those adults receive—including prison terms. Many states, however, have procedures that allow courts to consider returning teens charged as adults to the juvenile justice system (family courts). The referral question in these cases generally has to do with whether the youth is amenable to rehabilitative services within the juvenile justice system under the purview of family courts.
Fitness for Duty in Police Officers, Security Personnel, and Correctional Officers
We perform fitness-for-duty evaluations when questions about the impact of neurocognitive disorders or other mental disorders on an individual’s ability to provide service in a law enforcement or correctional capacity.
Have confidence that your case will be expertly handled with respect by our team of dedicated and experienced professionals.
Q&A
What are some of the issues that may warrant a Forensic Evaluation when involved in a legal matter?
History of Trauma (sexual/physical/emotional abuse and/or general neglect)
History of Learning Difficulties
Traumatic Brain Injury
Memory Impairment
Intellectual Difficulties
Attention/Concentration Impairment
Mental Health History
Current Emotional Distress
How does the Forensic Psychologist decide which tests will be administered?
The decision about how and when to use a test as part of a forensic assessment involves consideration of the relevance of the test to the legal question or to the psycho-logical construct that underlies the legal issue. Whether a given test is relevant is determined by the specific issues involved in the psycho-legal question. Only tests or instruments with a sound theoretical and psychometric base are used.
Where can a Forensic Evaluation take place?
The settings in which forensic evaluations occur are vast, including state hospitals, private offices, inpatient facilities, law enforcement, correctional, and civil and criminal court settings, to name a few.
How does the Forensic Psychologist decide which tests will be administered?
The decision about how and when to use a test as part of a forensic assessment involves consideration of the relevance of the test to the legal question or to the psycho-logical construct that underlies the legal issue. Whether a given test is relevant is determined by the specific issues involved in the psycho-legal question. Only tests or instruments with a sound theoretical and psychometric base are used.
How can a Forensic Evaluation remain objective?
Personal and professional ethics continue to be a priority for Thompson Psychological Evaluation Services, but we are also keenly aware of the impossibility of “complete objectivity” when dealing with the human mind. It is always possible (whether it’s intentual, or not) for the client to report information inconsistently, with personal assumptions or misinformation or even malingering. We are specifically trained to address this obstacle by using cross-reference and choosing psychological testing tools that have been researched, re-researched and honed to produce as unbiased a result as possible.
Still have questions?
That’s what we’re here for! Please don’t hesitate to reach out to Thompson Psychological Evaluation Services for further information.