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Conducting Forensic Assessments

Conducting Forensic Assessments This study discusses different aspects of forensic psychology in relation to juvenile suspects by assessing an individual in the case study portrayed in the documentary Murder on a Sunday Morning. This paper provides the brief descriptions of the following: The case study in the documentary, including a description of the individual and his forensic population. The potential role(s) of a forensic psychologist in relation to the case study. The forensic assessment principles that apply to the case study. Any third party information that may be necessary to collect for the forensic assessment of the case study. Ethical and/or multicultural issues and/or considerations related to the case study. An analysis of how a forensic psychologist might best address each of the ethical and/or multicultural issues and/or considerations that are described. What a forensic psychologist might think important to consider and/or determine when conducting a forensic assessment of the individual in this case study. What the courts might think important to consider and/or determine from a forensic assessment of the individual in this case study. At least two forensic assessment instruments and/or tools that might be used in relation to this case study, with an explanation of why. The elements that would be included in a forensic assessment report based on this case study. Which elements from a forensic assessment report based on this case study would be relevant for testimony, and why. The implications that the assessment may have for the outcome of the case Murder on a Sunday Morning This case study is based upon the forensic assessment of the accused individual in the documentary Murder on a Sunday Morning (2001). The crime scene in the documentary portrays Mr. James Stevens witnessing his wife being shot and murdered by a young black male who was robbing her at the gun point. The assailant committing this crime has been characterized as a six feet tall skinny black male of age in between 20 and 25 years. The police arrested Brenton Butler as a suspect who is a 15 year old black male although he is much shorter and younger than the actual assailant that the police was looking for. Nevertheless, Butler was suspected of the murder as he was the only black found near the crime scene at that time and being identified by the victims husband as the assailant who attacked his wife. He was then interrogated in the police station in the absence of his parents and was even denied of getting any legal help. Detective Glover interrogated the young man and attempted to make him confess the crime and pressurized him to locate the murder weapon. The detective took Butler to an area of woods close to the crime scene and hit him once on the face and twice in the stomach as he was unable to extract any information from the suspect. After which, another detective with the name Dwayne Darnell came to work on this case who made Butler sign a pre-written confession that became a prime evidence for the trial. The case was then picked up by Ann Finnell and Patrick Mc Guinness as public defenders against the state of Florida, who systematically proved the prosecution wrong on account of insufficient evidence produced for the trial. They proved that the police tortured Butler both psychologically and physically to obtain the written confession from him and that Butler had no motive for the crime, no forensic evidence and no murder weapon were found and neither do Butler have any criminal record in the past nor he had any history of risk factors such as poor parenting, poverty, mental disorders, etc., normally observed in criminals (Bartol Bartol, 2011 Burkhead, 2006). Hence, the jury set Butler free as he was not found guilty of the crime after just 45 minutes of discussion although Butler had already spent 6 months of imprisonment during the proceedings of the trial. Butler and his family settled for a compensation of 7.75 million dollars when they actually sued for 8.5 million dollars on account of civil rights violations while the lawyer was punished by the District Judge John H, Moore for not pleading the case appropriately (Schoettler Pinkham, 2002). Later, the real criminal was arrested, trialed and convicted for the crime. Although Butler received justice in the end, however, he would have not passed 6 months in prison if some aspects of forensic psychology had been considered earlier in the trial. Forensic psychological assessment would have been done to determine Butlers competency to stand trial. Moreover, Butler should have been given the instruments of Dr. Grisso to understand, assess and appreciate Miranda Rights so that he would have understood the meaning of waiving his rights and possibly would not have made the false confession under pressure (Goldstein, Condie, Kalbeitzer, Osman Geier, 2003). Role of a Forensic Psychologists There are just two aspects of forensic psychology that are applicable to the Butler case, which are: first to assess the ability of the young suspect (Butler) to waive his Miranda rights and the second to determine Butlers competency to stand trial. Assessment Principles The important question is that whether or not to apply different standards to assess the competency of a juvenile? Numerous studies along with this documentary Murder on a Sunday Morning have deduced that juveniles should better be assessed and trialed on the basis of their maturity level rather than just following the Dusky Standard for their assessment since their cognitive and reasoning abilities have not been fully developed as compared to those of the adults. Nevertheless, this issue is still in debate in the circles of the legal system (Ryba, Cooper Zapf, 2003, p500). The forensic psychologists should assess the juvenile suspect irrespective of the standards being followed such that his/her level of understanding the legal proceedings and his/her cognitive mental abilities are measured accurately. I consider that in this case study of the documentary Murder on a Sunday Morning if Butler was found incompetent to stand trial earlier in the proceedings then this would not have been much in favor of Butler since such a person is usually sent for treatment until he/she is able to stand trial which may even take several years. As, generally, the court proceedings would still hold while the suspected juvenile is treated through an outpatient method in order to gain competency to stand trial. Since Butler was innocent in the first place therefore keeping the trial on hold until he becomes competent to stand trial after treatment would have been a great injustice to him (Viljoen Roesch, 2008), perhaps the competency analysis was not done in the documentary due to this reason. Another problematic element of forensic psychology is the issue that who is the client. In general, the person whom the psychologist is treating or assessing is his/her client. Nevertheless, in legal matters as the one portrayed in the documentary Murder on a Sunday Morning, the psychologist is working in collaboration with the legal team to find out the mental level of the suspect and not for the diagnosis or treatment of the suspects problem. Hence, the final report written by the psychologist in this regard could be greatly biased depending upon the legal-team with which he/she is working and the type of the assessment being conducted. This further signifies that if the psychologist is working with the prosecution then he/she would emphasize over the violent behavior of the suspect in his/her assessment report and thereby, would recommend moving the juvenile suspect to the adult court so that the concentration is applied only to the punishment aspects of the law. On the other hand , if the psychologist is working with the defense counsel then he/she would like to keep the juvenile suspect in the juvenile court system so as to assure the provision of proper assistance and treatment for him/her. Third Party Information The third party information is also very important for a forensic psychologist although most of the information will be acquired from the individual under assessment. The public defenders in the case of Butler used his mother as a source for determining the personality and habits of her son due to which, the prosecution case was weakened. As for instance, Butlers mother refuted the statement of Glover (the primary interrogator) that Butler stood up to hug him and said he was glad to see him when he (the detective) entered in to the room, as she reveals that her son is very reserved and normally never hugs strangers. Although this information could have also been acquired from a psychologist however its impact was more when the mother herself presented it in front of the jury (de Lestrade, 2001). This further indicates that often vital information can be acquired from the third party instead of being available from the client. As the mother pointed out that Butler was very quiet and r eserved, hence his short replies to the questions allowed the forensic examiner to extract very little information from him to present to the court. Further, a doctor certified in front of the jury that the wounds on Butlers body were caused while he was in police custody. Although a forensic psychologist could report this information to the jury as third party information however, in accordance to the 4 Cs of testimony, a psychologist does not have a clinical knowledge about the wounds where as a medical doctor does, therefore the testimony of a medical doctor in this regard would be considered as the stronger evidence. Moreover, a medical doctor could testify that how the wounds were acquired by Butler while a forensic psychologist could not. Thus, the testimony of a medical doctor would pose a better impact on the trial along with ensuring adherence to the 4 Cs of testimony: Clarity, Certainty, Case Specificity and Clinical Knowledge (Kwartner Boccaccini, 2008). Multicultural Since Butler became the victim of racial profiling being the only young black male spotted in the area near to the crime scene, this point can be accounted as the only multicultural issue in this forensic study. Although Butler was younger and shorter than the prime suspect of the case but still the police picked him up for scrutiny. This point could be best utilized by the defense attorney but the forensic psychologist could endorse it, by ensuring that this sort of racial profiling is happening quite commonly across the United States, through various case studies. Forensic Considerations According to the juvenile court rules, the juveniles caught for committing violent crimes can be easily transferred to an adult court for prosecution, after which they will be confined in adult prisons if found guilty (Brannen et al., 2006). However, there is no provision for trialing a juvenile directly in to the adult court system. In the case of Butler, he was automatically prosecuted in an adult court without being prosecuted in and referred by the juvenile court. It is ambiguous that whether or not the necessary measures were followed for transferring him to the adult court system. Court Considerations In this case, the court has to take in to account the age of the accused and the outcome of his interrogation. At the age of 15 years, Butler does not possess the cognitive abilities of a mature person. He was also unaware of the interrogation procedures of the police and his rights in this regard. Since Butler got involved in a legal problem for the first time, he was totally unfamiliar with the Miranda rights due to which the police took advantage of him. Moreover, the medical testimony proving that the police physically abused Butler in order to make him sign the pre-written confession which was actually written by the police instead of Butler. The court would have to look in to the details of all the above considerations prior to affirming to Butlers confession. Forensic Assessments In this case study of Butler, the following forensic assessments would be considered to make a strong case against the prosecution counsel of Butler: Butlers ability to waive Miranda rights. Butlers direct trial in the adult court system. Butlers competency to stand the trial. Butlers psychological evaluation for any deviant behavior or mental problem. Forensic Elements The most important element that the forensic psychologist assigned in this case should consider is that the accused is a juvenile and not all analytical methods are designed for juveniles. Moreover, there is considerable ambiguity in the rights that are given to a juvenile in the proceedings of an adult court system. It is assumed that a juvenile being transferred to the adult court has the same rights and rules as those of an adult provided that such a juvenile bears the same cognitive abilities and understanding of the legal system as those possessed by an adult, which is usually negative. Since the eye witness testimony constitutes a vital evidence in this case, the forensic psychologist would have to prove that how and why testimony of the eye witness (victims husband) was inaccurate as Hugo Munsterberg (1908) showed in his book On the Witness Stand that the testimony of the eye witness can be often deceiving in the proceedings of the court. Ability to waive Miranda rights The Instruments of Dr. Grisso to assess, understand and appreciate Miranda Rights would have been extremely beneficial for Butlers defense in this case. The forensic psychologist should utilize this assessment in analyzing the ability of a juvenile in understanding and waiving his/her Miranda rights in a legal matter (Oberlander Goldstein, 2001). This assessment instrument was developed in the 1970s and then amended in the year 2003 to cater the changes made in the legal systems. The most important characteristic of this assessment instrument that is applicable to the Butlers case is the right of a person arrested to not give answers to the police interrogation until he/she is provided legal assistance of the lawyer by the police (Goldstein, et al., 2003). If this assessment was utilized in the Butlers case then he would not have been exposed to police torture and never would have agreed to the false confession under duress. In this case, the police mislead Butler by assuring him th at they would try to get an attorney for him but never clarified that he had the right to demand for an attorney and remain silent until he has been provided with his legal help. Forensic Report Although the law is absolutely clear in the elements to be included in a forensic report presented in the courts however no standards have been set as yet to carry out a competency analysis on juvenile. Various studies have investigated different methods to evaluate competency and those methods have been used extensively in practice which have been found to be most effective and accurate (Christy, Douglas, Otto Petrila, 2004). Since no standards have been set for assessing competency, hence the studies have observed vast discrepancies in forensic reports. There has been no indication of requesting or completing any forensic reports in the Butlers case. The proceedings of this case should have included an assessment of Butlers competency to stand trial and his ability as a juvenile to waive off his Miranda rights. Implications of the Report In case of the forensic report being completed and presented to the court in relation to Butlers ability to waive off his Miranda rights being a juvenile and his competency to stand trial, the court would have taken Butlers age and unawareness of the legal system in to account before trialing him in the adult court system on charge of a murder. The forensic report would have also enabled the court to assess Butlers understanding of his Miranda rights and his signing to the false confession under duress and thereby, affirming his innocence in this case. Conclusion The Butlers case properly illustrates that why a forensic psychologist should be included in the proceedings of the court, particularly in those involving a juvenile since the juveniles being immature and unaware require more legal protection and different assessment methods than those applicable to adults. In case of being trialed in the adult system, it should be ensured that the system does not exploit the juvenile on trial. Butler was saved from a severe punishment by the public defense attorneys who managed to point out the loopholes in the prosecution case and the violations made by the police interrogators.

Democracy In Ancient Greece :: Ancient Greece Essays

Democracy in Ancient Greece   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Greeks were very advanced for their time. They realized that they need a new form of government and they were able to invent the first democratic government in the world. The democracy that the Greeks came up with was based on two important factors. The first one was the population growth in Athens grew at a very fast rate. The second was the advocating of political, economic, and legal equality for all which some male citizens remembered from the living conditions in the Dark Ages. The Greek system of Democracy did have its shares of problems though.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Greek system of democracy was ruled by a body of nine elected officials whom were called archons. These men who were aristocrats lead the government and had supreme control over all of the verdicts and criminal accusations in Athens. Problems arose when aristocrats become jealous of one another and rivalries ensued under the early stages of Athenian democracy. The result of this jealousy was the establishment of a code written by the appointed ruler Draco. This code of laws promoted stability and equity. These laws however did more to hurt the democracy of Athens than to help it. It seems that Draco wrote this code of laws in order to benefit himself rather than to benefit the government of Athens.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The democracy of Athens was used in many ways other than for what it was designed for. It was abused by many rulers of that time. They were concerned with their own personal growth and because of their greed and selfishness, they made laws and codes that would benefit their own personal gain. The results though have not always been as what they had expected to have been. Many of the lower classes were treated very unfairly and rulers lost popularity to the lower classes. Civil war was even about to break out at one point due to Draco's codes and laws.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When civil war almost broke out in Athens the codes and laws were once again revamped. This time a pathway was attempted to be laid down that would accommodate both the upper and the lower classes. In the end four classes were developed to rank the male citizens of Athens based on their income. The five- hundred-measure men, horsemen, yoked men, and laborers were the four classes that were devised by this new system of codes and laws.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the Athenian society both the theories failed the men, and in turn the men failed the theories. Some of the theories that the rulers came up with

End-Stage Renal Disease :: essays research papers

This article is for people whose kidneys fail to work. This condition is called end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Today, there are new and better treatments for ESRD that replace the work of healthy kidneys. By learning about your treatment choices, you can work with your doctor to pick the one that's best for you. No matter which type of treatment you choose, there will be some changes in your life. But with the help of your health care team, family, and friends, you may be able to lead a full, active life. This article describes the choices for treatment: hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis, and kidney transplantation. It gives the pros and cons of each. It also discusses diet and paying for treatment. It gives tips for working with your doctor, nurses, and others who make up your health care team. It provides a list of groups that offer information and services to kidney patients. It also lists magazines, books, and brochures that you can read for more information about treatment. You and your doctor will work together to choose a treatment that's best for you. This article can help you make that choice. When Your Kidneys Fail Healthy kidneys clean the blood by filtering out extra water and wastes. They also make hormones that keep your bones strong and blood healthy. When both of your kidneys fail, your body holds fluid. Your blood pressure rises. Harmful wastes build up in your body. Your body doesn't make enough red blood cells. When this happens, you need treatment to replace the work of your failed kidneys. Treatment Choice: Hemodialysis Purpose Hemodialysis is a procedure that cleans and filters your blood. It rids your body of harmful wastes and extra salt and fluids. It also controls blood pressure and helps your body keep the proper balance of chemicals such as potassium, sodium, and chloride. How it Works Hemodialysis uses a dialyzer, or special filter, to clean your blood. The dialyzer connects to a machine. During treatment, your blood travels through tubes into the dialyzer. The dialyzer filters out wastes and extra fluids. Then the newly cleaned blood flows through another set of tubes and back into your body. Getting Ready Before your first treatment, an access to your bloodstream must be made. The access provides a way for blood to be carried from your body to the dialysis machine and then back into your body. The access can be internal (inside the body -- usually under your skin) or external (outside the body).

Essay --

Marxism and Christianity are two influential doctrines which have shaped our world in profound ways. While they differ on certain fronts, one cannot help but wonder that if there were some way that the two could coexist, that their synthesis could change the course of humanity inevitably. This discussion will be divided into two sections. The first one will be a brief summary and critique of Karl Marx’s rejection of religion, Contribution to the Critique of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right. By dissecting this piece, it is hoped that we may cast doubt on its effectiveness; in the process of rejecting religion, Marx may have excluded many potential supporters from his revolutionary cause. As well, an attempt will be made to propose that atheism should no longer be a necessary central tenet of Marxism. The second section will be concerned with providing evidence of both early and contemporary Christian teachings which mirror Marxist principles. Finally, our discussion will turn briefly to Liberation Theology to confirm that Marxist and Christian schools can, and do converge. By pursuing these ends, this analysis will show that, at a fundamental level, Christianity shares many core principles with Marxism, and as such, Marxists are misguided in their dogmati c and mechanical rejection of religion and more specifically, of Christianity. For Marxists to realise their goal of a classless society that is based upon equality and justice, they must be more inclusive and allow those who practice religion, especially Christians who share similar aims, into their revolutionary dialogue. In his criticism of Hegel’s Idealism, Marx asserts that religious devotion represents a, â€Å"reversed world consciousness† , the result of wh... ... that both Marxists and Christians are concerned with the perils of human alienation and that each doctrine’s prescription to cure its causes is similar. Finally, Liberation Theology proves that Marxist and Christian ideals can synthesise and that their intercourse has created a new and possibly revolutionary stage of human existence. Christianity and Marxism both seem to have become detached from their original aims, which were to provide a method by which humanity may achieve the best possible life; for both, this will be realised through the practice of mutual aid, equality and love. All other points of contention between them seem polemical and counter revolutionary. One 20th century Christian revolutionary wrote that, â€Å"solidarity, in spite of all divergences, is absolutely essential if a revolutionary project is to be successful.† That is indeed the case.

Britain of evacuation in World War Two Essay

During the course of World War Two, many people were evacuated, not just children. There were many differing reactions to evacuation. The reaction would depend on the experience you had. Reactions would also change over time during the war and even after the war had finished. One set of people affected by Evacuation was the Children. Many children did not know where they were going and therefore experienced feelings of fear and anger. The children disliked being separated from their parents but put on brave faces so not worry their families. When the children arrived at their destination, they were taken to school halls of town meeting places where the were chosen by their â€Å"foster† families, which they disliked because often they were split from their sisters and brothers. If they had negative attitudes, they very often did not settle quickly like those who had positive attitudes and would see their stay as a holiday. If an evacuee had a positive experience, they would have pleasant memories of being treated as one of the family. Evacuation was described as â€Å"no better than a ‘paedophile’s charter’ † as it would have been easier to abuse children away from home. However, in a study of 450 ex-evacuees, only 12% of them had bad experiences. Michael Caine remembers being evacuated with his brother Clarence. He said † My brother used to went the bed when he was nervous. My foster mother could not figure out who it was so she beat both of us, and Clarence became more nervous and wet the bed more. † However, not all experiences were bad. On ex-evacuees remembers being given clothes when he was evacuated. A child’s reaction to evacuation would depend on their experiences while in care. Another set of people who were affected by evacuation was the children’s parents. Most parents were reluctant to send their children away but agreed because of propaganda. Not all parents sent their children away though. Some parents thought that their children were safe in their family home. However, most parents brought their children home due to the ‘phoney ‘ war. But the children were evacuated again when the Blitz happened, although the scale of evacuation was not as large as the first wave in September 1939. Thanks to the Blitz, many parents changed their opinions on evacuation, now agreeing that it was probably best for their children.

Use of a Redox Indicator to show Dehydrogenase Activity

Triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (also known as T.T.C) is an example of an artificial hydrogen acceptor. It is a redox indicator which is colourless when oxidised, however when reduced, it produces a red, insoluble precipitate called ‘formazans'. T.T.C can therefore be used to investigate the enzyme activity of dehyrogenase enzymes by showing a colour change when they are present. The purpose of this experiment is to see what effect temperature has on the activity of dehydrogenase enzymes within yeast cells. Materials/Apparatus: * Actively respiring yeast suspension. This is prepared by adding 10g of dried yeast to 1dm3 of distilled water, followed by mixing in 50g of glucose. This mixture should be allowed to stand for 24 hours before the experiment takes place. * Tiphenyl tetrazolium chloride is used as a redox indicator to investigate the activity of dehydrogenase enzymes when yeast suspension is exposed to different temperatures. * Distilled water for the preparation of the yeast suspension. * Test tubes to place the mixture of yeast and T.T.C. * Test tube rack to allow the test tubes to stand upright in the water baths. * Incubator to allow enzyme activity to occur at different temperatures * Syringes to accurately measure the right amount of yeast and T.T.C needed for each solution. * A Glass rod to evenly distribute the cells in the solution after the T.T.C has been added. * Crushed ice to allow the dehyrogenase activity to take place at 10degrees. * Beakers for the yeast suspension to be prepared in. * Thermometer to measure the temperature of the water bath containing the ice cubes. * Stopwatch to measure the time taken for the solution to change colour. NOTE: The colour change is completed once the solution has turned a ‘salmon pink' colour. Allow all solutions to reach the same colour before removing them from the water baths. Method: Prepare a solution of yeast cells by adding 10g of dried yeast to 1dm3 of distilled water, followed by mixing in 50g of glucose. This mixture should be allowed to stand for 24 hours before the experiment takes place. Once the yeast suspension has been allowed to stand for 24 hours, the froth should be removed and discarded. Set up a water bath by adding ice cubes to cold water, until the water has reached 10degrees. Continue to measure the temperature with a thermometer ensuring that the temperature is maintained. Set up separate incubators at 30, 40, 50 and 60 degrees. Using a syringe, place 5cm of yeast suspension into three separate test tubes and place in the incubator. Leave for several minutes and then add 0.5cm of T.T.C into each solution and place them back into the incubator set at 30degrees. Start the stopwatch immediately. Observe carefully for any colour changes that have developed. When the colour change has taken place, take the test tubes out of the incubator and note down the time taken for the colour change to take place. Repeat this procedure at 20, 40, 50 and 60 degrees. To measure the dehydrogenase activity at 20 degrees, carry out this procedure at room temperature. Table of results: Temperature (degrees) Time taken for colour change to occur (minutes) 10 No change 20 52.11 30 26.12 40 10.08 50 4.22 60 4.43 A bar graph has been produced to portray these results so that a comparison can clearly be seen. The graph has been drawn on graph paper. Conclusion: The results from this experiment indicate that temperature has a definite affect on the activity of dehydrogenase enzymes. The graph shows that as the temperature increases, the time taken for the solution to change colour decreases. This shows that dehyrogenase enzymes work faster at a higher temperature as there was no colour change when the T.T.C was added to the yeast suspension at 10 degrees. The temperature at which the dehydrogenase enzymes worked at their quickest was 50 degrees. This indicates that 50 degrees is the optimum temperature for the enzyme activity to take place as the colour change took slightly longer when placed in a water bath set at 60 degrees. This may be due to the fact that some of the dehydrogenase enzymes could have been denatured due to the high temperature. However, it is not quite clear whether 50 degrees is the optimum temperature for the enzyme activity to take place because this experiment took place using a limited amount of temperature ranges. If this investigation was to be repeated, a wider range of temperatures could be used so that an optimum temperature could be established. Overall, the results from this experiment support the hypothesis and therefore have provided successful and sufficient data which have confirmed the predictions that were made prior to the investigation taking place.