Relationships between patient-level factors and criteria for fitness to stand trial

Authors

  • Teodora Prpa Faculty of Law, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada
  • Heather Marie Moulden McMaster University, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences & Forensic Psychiatry Program, St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton, Hamilton, Canada
  • Liane Taylor Forensic Psychiatry Program, St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton, Hamilton, Canada
  • Gary Andrew Chaimowitz McMaster University, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences & Forensic Psychiatry Program, St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton, Hamilton, Canada

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15173/ijrr.v1i3.3530

Keywords:

Fitness to Stand Trial, Competency to stand trial, Criminal Code of Canada, Structure Professional Judgment, Assessment

Abstract

In Western criminal justice systems, proceedings may be halted if an individual is deemed mentally unfit to stand trial. As a prerequisite to adjudication fitness to stand trial can be evaluated through structured or unstructured assessments. Previousstudies suggest limited use of structured assessments in clinical practice. Few studies have looked at the success of unstructured measures of psycholegal abilities, and fewer still have investigated the influence of individual variables on criteria for fitness to stand trial. The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between variables relevant to opining fitness as determined by previous research and the criteria for fitness to stand trial. The study yielded significant correlations between the three criteria for fitness to stand trial and the following variables: impaired mental status during assessment, presence of intellectual disability, nature of index offence, socioeconomic status, and all unstructured measures of psycholegal abilities. These results suggest that unstructured clinician assessment of fitness to stand trial can be successful at determining fitness and fulfillment of the three underlying criteria, and further clarify the role of specific symptoms on opinions of unfitness. Future directions for research in the areas of structured professional judgment and fitness restoration are discussed.

References

Criminal Code of Canada, RSC 1985, c 46. http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/PDF/C-46.pdf

Dusky v United States (1960) 362 US 402. https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/362/402/case.html

Prpa T, Moulden HM, Taylor L, Chaimowitz GA. A review of patient-level factors related to the assessment of fitness to stand trial in Canada. Int J Risk Recovery. 2018;

Borum R, Grisso T. Psychological test use in criminal forensic evaluations. Prof Psychol Res Pr. 1995;26.

Gay JG, Ragatz L, Vitacco M. Mental Health Symptoms and their Relationship to Specific Deficits in Competency to Proceed to Trial Evaluations. Psychiatry Psychol Law. 3 sept 2015;22(5):780‑91.

Nicholson RA, Kugler KE. Competent and incompetent criminal defendants: A quantitative review of comparative research. Psychol Bull. 1991;109(3):355‑70.

Cover of Volume 1 Issue 3 - December 2018

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Published

2018-10-03

How to Cite

Prpa, T., Moulden, H. M., Taylor, L., & Chaimowitz, G. A. (2018). Relationships between patient-level factors and criteria for fitness to stand trial. International Journal of Risk and Recovery, 1(3), 6–14. https://doi.org/10.15173/ijrr.v1i3.3530

Issue

Vol. 1 No. 3 (2018)

Section

Original Article

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