ABSTRACT
Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 5 Competency to Stand Trial ........................................................................................................... 5 Criminal Responsibility ................................................................................................................ 7 Ethics .............................................................................................................................................. 13 Utilizing the Empirical Literature ............................................................................................. 14 e Expert’s Decision Path ......................................................................................................... 20 Forensic Reports and Expert Witnessing ................................................................................. 31 Conclusions ................................................................................................................................... 34 References ...................................................................................................................................... 35 Legal References ........................................................................................................................... 39
Defendant John Smith is a 38-year-old, right-handed, single, construction supervisor who was charged with three counts of rst-degree murder, attempted rst-degree murder, burglary, kidnapping, and sexual assault, in addition to other charges, a er an alleged home invasion and subsequent acts. He was referred by his court-appointed defense attorneys for a forensic evaluation of methamphetamine-related state of mind issues. In recounting the incident, he stated that he had a few beers at his job site with his boss a er work. He and a friend then drove to a secluded spot and together smoked over 1 gram of methamphetamine (“ice”). A er dropping o his friend, Defendant Smith went to his sister’s home where he was staying. He found a syringe belonging to another family member and injected methamphetamine into his le arm. He then lay down in his room, feeling more intoxicated
and thinking that he needed some fast money to buy more of the drug. He had $400 in his wallet at the time and the next day was payday. However, he had earmarked those funds for home improvements and automobile repairs. He then remembered an apparently vacant house on the route to work that would be a likely prospect to burglarize. He considered several options of places to rob such as a bank, store, or business, but decided to burglarize this particular house because it overall presented a low risk for apprehension.
