Introduction
As a practice, forensic psychology is defined as the psychological assessment of persons involved in the legal and justice system. It is important for professionals in this field to have training in both legal and forensic psychology. However, the skills that are essential to the work of a forensic psychologist entail the ability to conduct a solid clinical assessment, communicate effectively with their clients and other stakeholders, as well as capability to carry out interviews. In addition, the professional should be able to present their case in a competent manner (Archer & Wheeler, 2013). In addition, forensic psychologists are called upon to offer threat assessment, evaluation on child custody, and competency reviews of criminal defendants. As such, forensic psychology is used to provide scientific evidence that can be relied upon to determine whether an individual is competent, sane, or has a traumatic or psychological syndrome (Archer & Wheeler, 2013). In this paper, the author will provide a brief delineation of forensic psychology in cases to do with insanity, incompetency to stand trial, and psychological syndrome.
Forensic Psychology and Defense Strategy in the Criminal Justice System
Forensic Psychology and Competency to Stand Trial among Defendants
The defense can rely on insanity and competency to prove that the accused is not fit to stand trial. As a concept, competency to stand trial is rooted in the provisions of the common law (Bartol & Bartol, 2014). The law prohibits judicial officers from carrying out trials in absentia. To evaluate the competency of a defendant, the forensic psychologist is guided by the scientific principles espoused in the field of psychological science (Bartol & Bartol, 2014). It is important to note that competency is not the same as insanity. The two elements are significantly different. For example, competency is used in the criminal justice system to determine if a defendant is capable of appearing on trial (Helfgott, 2013). It is also important to determine whether or not the accused is able to follow the legal proceedings. Insanity and sanity are used to establish whether or not a defendant can be held responsible for their crimes (Bartol & Bartol, 2014). To this end, a person who is determined to be insane cannot be made to stand trial. Conversely, a sane individual should be held responsible for their criminal acts. It can be observed that the two terms play quite different roles in legal proceedings.
Forensic Psychology, Insanity, and Criminal Proceedings
A defendant in a criminal case can use insanity as a strategy to show that they are not fit to stand trial. The main argument that can be used by the defense team is that the accused was not responsible for the actions due to persistent or episodic psychological disease at the time when the crime was committed (Helfgott, 2013). The argument by the defense is usually based on the findings of assessments carried out by forensic psychologists. To carry out the evaluations, the psychologists apply the appropriate tests as determined by the jurisdiction within which they are operating (Linden & Hewitt, 2011).
Psychological Syndrome in Forensic Psychology
Greene and Heilbrun (2013) provide a working definition of psychological syndromes. According to these scholars, the syndromes can be viewed as mental disorders that involve thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. The disorders may cause significant distress to self or to other people around them (Roesch, Zapf, & Hart, 2010). The distress may mean that the individual is unable to meet their personal needs. In addition, the individual is unable to function properly. In most cases, they are also a threat to themselves and to other people around them (Roesch et al., 2010). Most psychological syndromes have a significant impact on the life of the individual.
There are different types of psychological syndromes, which may be used as a defense strategy in legal proceedings. One of them is the battered woman syndrome (Bartol & Bartol, 2014). A woman who is battered by her husband may react and harm the perpetrator of the action. If she is taken to court, the defense can argue that the trauma associated with the battering is what made her commit the offense. Rape trauma is another psychological syndrome (Bartol & Bartol, 2014). A rape victim who harms her attacker in self-defense may be considered to have been insane when she committed the offense. As such, she may be deemed unfit to stand trial.
Forensic Psychologists and their Role in the Criminal Justice System
According to Roesch et al. (2010), the role of the forensic psychologist within the criminal justice system takes many forms. For instance, the psychologist may act as an expert witness or a defendant in a case. In addition to the conventional court processes, the forensic psychologist may be called upon by officials within the justice system to determine a threat posed by a defendant or a convicted offender to the society (Roesch et al., 2010). The psychologist may also be requested to assess whether or not the defendant is likely to repeat the criminal action in the future. To achieve these objectives, the professional is expected to carry out scientific tests to arrive at a conclusion. The conclusion is supposed to reflect a vivid assessment of the offender’s psychological behavior and orientation (Greene & Heilbrun, 2013). Such assessment reports helps the court to establish how to proceed with the case. The conclusions provided by the professional will help the judicial officer in charge of the case to come up with an appropriate strategy to handle the accused person.
Forensic Psychology in the Criminal Justice System: A Case Scenario
An assessment of the scenario presented in the case study provides significant information regarding the situation at hand. For example, it is apparent that the case involves the commission of a violent murder (Linden & Hewitt, 2011). An evaluation of the scene reveals that the room is in turmoil. In addition, the nails of the lady victim are broken. It is also apparent that the victim has bruises on the upper arm (Linden & Hewitt, 2011). Most importantly, she had had been stabbed thirteen times. The victim seems to have been attacked by an individual suffering from serious mental disturbances.
Conclusion
Forensic psychology is an important element in the modern criminal justice system. Practitioners in this field help judicial officers by providing them with scientific and balanced evidence with regards to criminal matters where the mental state of the offender is in doubt. In addition, the forensic psychologists profile an offender who may have escaped from the judicial system using behavioral analytical procedures. Such profiles give the investigating officers important information regarding the person who may have committed the crime.
References
Archer, R., & Wheeler, E. (2013). Forensic uses of clinical assessment instruments (2nd ed.). London: Routledge.
Bartol, C., & Bartol, A. (2014). Introduction to forensic psychology: Research and application (4th ed.). London: SAGE Publications Inc.
Greene, E., & Heilbrun, K. (2013). Wrightsman’s psychology and the legal system (8th ed.). Boston: Wadsworth Publishing.
Helfgott, J. (2013). Criminal psychology. Santa Barbara: Praeger.
Linden, W., & Hewitt, P. (2011). Clinical psychology: A modern health profession. London: Psychology Press.
Roesch, R., Zapf, P., & Hart, S. (2010). Forensic psychology and law. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.