Psychology's Role in The Legal System
Psychiatrists are licensed physicians that can assess both mental and physical states. Profilers look for patterns in behavior to typify the individual(s) behind a crime. A group effort attempts to answer the most common psychological questions: If there is a risk of a sexual predator re-offending if put back in society; If an offender is competent to stand trial; whether or not an offender was sane/insane at the time of the offense.
The question of competency to stand trial is a question of an offender’s current state of mind. This assesses the offender’s ability to understand the charges against them, the possible outcomes of being convicted/acquitted of these charges and their ability to assist their attorney with their defense. The question of sanity/insanity or criminal responsibility is an assessment of the offenders state of mind at the time of the crime. This refers to their ability to understand right from wrong and what is against the law. The insanity defense is rarely used, as it is very difficult to prove. If declared insane, an offender is committed to a secure hospital facility for much longer than they would have served in prison. Theoretically, that is.
Read more about this topic: Criminal Psychology
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