Law and Psychology Commons^™

Pursuing Justice For The Mentally Disabled, Grant H. Morris

University of San Diego Public Law and Legal Theory Research Paper Series

This article considers whether lawyers act as zealous advocates when they represent mentally disordered, involuntarily committed patients who wish to assert their right to refuse treatment with psychotropic medication. After discussing a study that clearly demonstrates that lawyers do not do so, the article explores the reasons for this inappropriate behavior. Michael Perlin characterizes the problem as “sanism,” which he describes as an irrational prejudice against mentally disabled persons of the same quality and character as other irrational prejudices that cause and are reflected in prevailing social attitudes of racism, sexism, homophobia, and ethnic bigotry. The article critiques Perlin’s characterization …

What Do Juvenile Offenders Know About Being Tried As Adults? Implications For Deterrence , Richard E. Redding

Working Paper Series

An underlying assumption in the nationwide policy shift toward transferring more juveniles to criminal court has been the belief that stricter, adult sentences will act as either a specific or general deterrent to juvenile crime. With respect to general deterrence - whether transfer laws deter would-be offenders from committing crimes - it is important to examine whether juveniles know about transfer laws, whether this knowledge deters criminal behavior, and whether juveniles believe the laws will be enforced against them. The current study is one of the first to examine juveniles' knowledge and perceptions of transfer laws and criminal sanctions. We …

Criminal Prosecution And Civil Remedies For Victims Of Sexual Offenses: Amendment Of The Rape Shield Law, Carol E. Jordan, Elizabeth S. Hughes, Mary Jo Gleason

Office for Policy Studies on Violence Against Women Publications

In 2003, the Kentucky Supreme Court adopted the amended KRS 412, effectively making the language of KRE 412 consistent with the analogous Federal Rule of Evidence 412. Now, as in federal court, the provisions of the Rape Shield Law apply in both criminal and civil cases to govern when and how evidence of a victim's alleged sexual behavior or sexual predisposition may be introduced. The article describes the intent of the original Rape Shield Law and the implications of its amended version in both civil and criminal cases.

Expert Testimony In Capital Sentencing: Juror Responses, John H. Montgomery, J. Richard Ciccone, Stephen P. Garvey, Theodore Eisenberg

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

The U.S. Supreme Court, in Furman v. Georgia (1972), held that the death penalty is constitutional only when applied on an individualized basis. The resultant changes in the laws in death penalty states fostered the involvement of psychiatric and psychologic expert witnesses at the sentencing phase of the trial, to testify on two major issues: (1) the mitigating factor of a defendant’s abnormal mental state and (2) the aggravating factor of a defendant’s potential for future violence. This study was an exploration of the responses of capital jurors to psychiatric/psychologic expert testimony during capital sentencing. The Capital Jury Project is …

Time-Inconsistent Management & The Sarbanes-Oxley Act, Manuel A. Utset

Scholarly Publications

No abstract provided.

Reflections On The Essential Role Of Legal Scholarship In Advancing Causes Of Citizen Groups, Nadine Strossen

Articles & Chapters

No abstract provided.

Developmental Incompetence, Due Process, And Juvenile Justice Policy, Elizabeth S. Scott, Thomas Grisso

Faculty Scholarship

In 2003, the Florida District Court of Appeal reversed the murder conviction and life sentence imposed on Lionel Tate, who was twelve years old when he killed his six-year-old neighbor. Since Lionel was reported to be the youngest person in modern times to be sent to prison for life, the case had generated considerable debate, and the decision was appealed on several grounds. What persuaded the appellate court that the conviction could not stand, however, was the trial court's rejection of a petition by Lionel's attorney for an evaluation of his client's competence to assist counsel and to make a …

Criminal Law In A Post-Freudian World, Deborah W. Denno

Faculty Scholarship

Freudian psychoanalytic theory has greatly influenced the modern definition of criminal culpability. Indeed, much of the language of key criminal statutes, cases, and psychiatric testimony is framed by psychoanalytic concepts. This impact is particularly evident in the Model Penal Code's mens rea provisions and defenses, which were developed in the 1950s and 1960s, a time of Freudian reign in the United States. For contemporary criminal law, however, this degree of psychoanalytic presence is troublesome. Freudian theory is difficult to apply to group conflicts and legal situations, and the theory emphasizes unconscious (rather than conscious) thoughts. The rising new science of …

Intimate Partner Violence And The Justice System: An Examination Of The Interface, Carol E. Jordan

Office for Policy Studies on Violence Against Women Publications

Women entering the court system face a challenging experience, in part, because a courtroom can be an intimidating and difficult place for any person, and in part because women victimized by crimes in which the offender is known to them face distinctive difficulties when they seek the court’s remedies. The interface is also made more challenging for women as the literature offers disparate findings as to the efficacy of criminal justice responses and civil remedies. This article briefly explores the unique characteristics of intimate partner violence cases that influence the interface of these victims with the court system.Areviewis provided of …

Toward A National Research Agenda On Violence Against Women: Continuing The Dialogue On Research And Practice [Part Two], Carol E. Jordan

Office for Policy Studies on Violence Against Women Publications

No abstract provided.

Toward A National Research Agenda On Violence Against Women: Continuing The Dialogue On Research And Practice [Part One], Carol E. Jordan

Office for Policy Studies on Violence Against Women Publications

No abstract provided.

Mental Disorder And The Civil/Criminal Distinction, Grant H. Morris

University of San Diego Public Law and Legal Theory Research Paper Series

This essay, written as part of a symposium issue to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the University of San Diego Law School, discusses the evaporating distinction between sentence-serving convicts and mentally disordered nonconvicts who are involved in, or who were involved in, the criminal process–people we label as both bad and mad. By examining one Supreme Court case from each of the decades that follow the opening of the University of San Diego School of Law, the essay demonstrates how the promise that nonconvict mentally disordered persons would be treated equally with other civilly committed mental patients was made and …

Flouting The Law, Janice Nadler

ExpressO

What happens when a person’s common sense view of justice diverges from the sense of justice he or she sees enshrined in particular laws? In particular, does the perception of one particular law as unjust make an individual less likely to comply with unrelated laws? This Article advances the Flouting Thesis – the idea that the perceived legitimacy of one law can influence one’s willingness to comply with unrelated laws – and provides original experimental evidence to support this thesis. This Article presents new, original evidence that one’s willingness to disobey the law can extend far beyond the particular unjust …

Two Standards Of Competency Are Better Than One: Why Some Defendants Who Are Not Competent To Stand Trial Should Be Permitted To Plead Guilty, Jason R. Marshall

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Note argues that the present uniform standard of competency, competence to stand trial, be abolished in favor of two standards: competence to stand trial and competence to plea bargain. Part I traces the history of the competency standard by exploring its common law origins, the Supreme Court rulings that frame the debate, an academic reformulation of the competency inquiry, and the interests protected by requiring that defendants be competent to proceed through the criminal process. Part II contrasts the cognitive abilities, capacity to communicate with counsel, and courtroom behavior of defendants standing trial with those qualities required of defendants …

Sell V. United States: Involuntary Administration Of Antipsychotic Medication To Criminal Defendants, Brandy M. Rapp

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.

International Child Abductions: The Challenges Facing America , Charles F. Hall

ExpressO

International child abductors often escape domestic law enforcement and disappear without consequence or resolution. International child abductions occur too frequently; in the United States alone, the number of children abducted abroad every year has risen to over 1,000. Currently, 11,000 American children live abroad with their abductors. These abductions occur despite international treaties and the Congressional resolutions that have significantly stiffened the penalties for those caught. Effectively combating international child abductions requires drafting resolutions that are acceptable across the diverse societies and cultures of the international community. Without such resolutions to fill the gaps of current treaties this problem will …

Criminal Defendants Deemed Incapable To Proceed To Trial: An Evaluation Of North Carolina's Statutory Scheme, Jennifer L. Morris

Campbell Law Review

This Comment will first address North Carolina's statute governing incapacity to proceed to trial. Next, this Comment will turn to the purpose and need for involuntary commitment, followed by a discussion of and explanations for the correlation between mental illness and criminal incarceration. This Comment will then present some suggestions for statutory revision of the existing North Carolina statute and will conclude with a brief discussion of funding issues.

Sexually Violent Predator Laws: Psychiatry In Service To A Morally Dubious Enterprise, Eric S. Janus

Faculty Scholarship

This article discusses the role of psychiatrists in determining the treatment of sexually violent predators (SVP). Instead of being released at the end of their prison sentences, sex offenders in the USA who are judged mentally disordered and dangerous are being confined in secure "treatment facilities" for indeterminate terms. This novel and aggressive legislative tactic—embodied in US sexually violent predator laws—commandeers the traditional power of state mental health systems and puts it in service to a core function of the criminal justice system: the control of sexual violence. This transposition of "civil commitment" has forced psychiatry to legitimate and arbitrate …

Lay Participation In The Japanese Justice System, Kent Anderson, Mark Nolan

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The Authors introduce and critique Japan's proposed quasi-jury or lay assessor system (saiban-in seido). The proposed mixed-court will have judges and lay people deciding together both guilt and sentences in serious criminal cases. Its proponents have promised that the lay assessor system will produce better justice in the courts and a more democratic society for Japan. The Authors first expose the competing interests in the lay assessor drafting process, examining their subtly but importantly varied proposals. Second, the Authors historically review lay participation in Japan, arguing that it has failed to deliver better justice and more democracy because the existing …

The Mentally Ill Offender: A Brighter Tomorrow Through The Eyes Of The Mentally Ill Offender Treatment And Crime Reduction Act Of 2004, Ralph M. Rivera

Journal of Law and Health

Beginning in the early 1950s and '60s, states began to close their public mental health hospitals. This process was known as "deinstitutionalization." In recent years, following the massive wave of deinstitutionalization, a substantial number of institutionalized persons with mental disabilities were relocated from civil mental hospitals into jails and prisons, Despite this shift in population, correctional facilities remain ill-equipped to handle and deal with offenders with mental disabilities. One study found that approximately 6.5-10% of inmates suffered from a serious mental illness, while another 15-40% suffered from a moderate mental illness. Another study done by the Bureau of Justice Statistics …

[N]Ot A Story To Pass On: Constructing Mothers Who Kill, Susan Ayres

Faculty Scholarship

Toni Morrison has said in her Nobel acceptance speech, “We die. That may be the meaning of life. But we do language. That may be the measure of our lives.” How we “do language” in judicial decisions about infanticide can perhaps be compared to and informed by fiction such as Toni Morrison’s Beloved.

Beloved provides a fictional account of the life of a historical woman, a slave who escaped to freedom and then attempted to kill all four of her children, successfully killing one when her master came to claim her under the Fugitive Slave Act. In addition to …

Nietzsche In Law's Cathedral: Beyond Reason And Postmodernism, John Linarelli

Scholarly Works

Nietzsche had very little to say about law and what he did say is fragmentary and sporadic. Nietzsche's philosophy, however, offers a basis for theorizing about law. I use Nietzsche's important works to interpret two major movements in legal thought. The first part of the paper examines how Nietzsche's philosophy augments our understanding of deontological theories about the law. Nietzsche produced a substantial ethical theory. The second part of the paper examines how Nietzsche's philosophy helps us to understand law and economics. Nietzsche had a great deal to say about the intellectual predecessor to law and economics, utilitarianism, and his …

Booze, Drugs, And Rock & Roll: Crime During The College Years, Paul S. Gutman

ExpressO

In this Article, the author examines the predilection of college and university students towards certain types of illegal behaviors. Specifically, the Article considers the widespread instances of drug use, under-age alcohol use, and "file-sharing" using Napster and its progeny. The Article's main focus is on why such illegal behaviors are rampant among college students who might otherwise be

Intelligence Testing And Atkins: Considerations For Appellate Courts And Appellate Lawyers, Lajuana Davis

The Journal of Appellate Practice and Process

No abstract provided.

Fundamental Retribution Error: Criminal Justice And The Social Psychology Of Blame, Donald A. Dripps

Vanderbilt Law Review

At least since the M'Naghten case of the 1840s,' Anglo- American criminal law has concerned itself closely, famously, and contentiously with the psychology of the accused. Another significant body of scholarship addresses the psychology of juries, and other valuable research has approached some of the rules of criminal evidence from the perspective of social and cognitive psychology. There has, however, yet to be a general investigation of what social cognition research might teach us about the criminal law's pervasive concern with blameworthiness.

This Article undertakes that investigation. It brings research on the psychology of social cognition to bear on the …

The Quandary Of Megan's Law: When The Child Sex Offender Is A Child, 37 J. Marshall L. Rev. 73 (2003), Timothy E. Wind

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

What They Say At The End: Capital Victims' Families And The Press, Samuel R. Gross, Daniel J. Matheson

Articles

Perhaps the most common complaint by American crime victims and their families is that they are ignored-by the police, by the prosecutors, by the courts and by the press. However true that may be for capital cases in general, there is at least one consistent exception: the great majority of newspaper accounts of executions include at least some description of the reactions of the victims' families and of any surviving victims. It seems to have become an item on the checklist, part of the "who, what, where, when, why, and how" of execution stories. When no family members are available, …

Breaking The Camel's Back: A Consideration Of Mitigatory Criminal Defenses And Racism-Related Mental Illness, Camille A. Nelson

Michigan Journal of Race and Law

This article will examine the concept of racist words, symbols, and actions that are used as weapons to "ambush, terrorize, wound, humiliate, and degrade,” as psychological and physiological violence. The implications of such violence are relevant to several affirmative defenses and, indeed, to the initial formulation of mens rea. The historical and contextual legacy that is intentionally invoked by the utilization of racialized violence is what separates the racial epithet or racially violent symbolism from other distressing insults and slurs. While First Amendment protection extends to offensive or insulting speech, the mental and physical sequelae of such speech, even absent …

Speeding In Reverse: An Anecdotal View Of Why Victim Impact Testimony Should Not Be Driving Capital Prosecutions, Sheri Johnson

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Conspiracy Theory, Neal K. Katyal

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

Over one-quarter of all federal criminal prosecutions and a large number of state cases involve prosecutions for conspiracy. Yet, the major scholarly articles and the bulk of prominent jurists have roundly condemned the doctrine. This Article offers a functional justification for the legal prohibition against conspiracy, centering on psychological and economic accounts. Advances in psychology over the past thirty years have demonstrated that groups cultivate a special social identity. This identity often encourages risky behavior, leads individuals to behave against their self-interest, solidifies loyalty, and facilitates harm against non-members. So, too, economists have developed sophisticated explanations for why firms promote …