Intellectual Disability: Criminal and Civil Forensic Issues

by Michael Chafetz

Overview

Courts recognize that those who are involved in medico-legal proceedings have a stake in the outcome of their psychological assessment, regardless of whether they are high- or low-functioning individuals. Accounting for the validity of the evaluation in low-functioning examinees is frequently made more difficult by impairment; when evaluating testimony from people with intellectual disability (ID), neuropsychologists and psychologists must acknowledge the differences between the medico-legal evaluation and the clinical evaluation. This book provides helpful guidelines for assessing validity in low-functioning claimants. It charts recent advances in psychological and neuropsychological assessment pertaining to civil and criminal proceedings while examining issues such as validity and motivation, assessments of disability, criminal and civil capacities, capital cases, Miranda waiver cases, and others. In disability cases, the Social Security Administration has had a long-standing policy that prevents neuropsychologists and psychologists from using validity instruments--yet, using this book, an accurate and valid assessment can still be obtained. Evaluators who perform assessments in capital cases will find up-to-date discussions of the Flynn Effect, measurement of intellectual functioning, problems associated with the assessment of adaptive functioning, and the challenge of validity assessment. Miranda waiver evaluations for those with low IQ are discussed concerning issues of capacity measurement, including reading and language analysis for the Miranda advisement in the particular jurisdiction in question. Testamentary capacity is discussed at length, showing how understanding of the legal standard is helpful in guiding the examination. Competency to stand trial, or adjudicative competence, is the main topic in the area of criminal competencies, with exploration of the Dusky standard and the various tests used to evaluate this competence, focusing on individuals with ID.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780199998135
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	03/10/2015
Series:	AACN Workshop Series
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	224
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Dr. Michael Chafetz is a Board Certified Clinical Neuropsychologist whose research focuses on the validity of Social Security Disability examinations. His work has been instrumental in changing the nature of the psychological consultative examination for Social Security disability, particularly involving the analysis of validity in low-IQ examinations. Dr. Chafetz was recognized as the Distinguished Psychologist by the Louisiana Psychological Association in 2012, and received the Courage Community Award by the Psychology Times in January, 2013.

Table of Contents

Preface Chapter 1: Introduction and History Chapter 2: Through the Lens of Validity Chapter 3: Social Security Disability Chapter 4: Capital Cases Chapter 5: Miranda Waiver Capacity Chapter 6: Other Competencies/Capacities - Civil and Criminal

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Christopher J Graver, PhD, ABPP-CN(Madigan Healthcare System)
Description: Written with a medicolegal context in mind, this book has the specter of invalid test performance and noncredible intellectual disability at the forefront. It is part of the AACN Workshop Series that has a tradition of high quality products.
Purpose: The purpose is to guide neuropsychological examiners in a forensic setting through the challenges and pitfalls inherent in the assessment of intellectually disabled individuals, especially with regard to the potential of noncredible presentations for secondary gain or to avoid punishment.
Audience: The primary audience is neuropsychologists, although clinical psychologists performing intellectual evaluations also may find this useful. It is written at an advanced level, assuming a high level of knowledge and comprehension of psychological testing concepts and forensic familiarity. The author is well published and well versed in the topic.
Features: The book begins with a succinct overview of key historical points in terms of court rulings, regulations, diagnostic criteria and designations, and epidemiology. This is followed by an excellent review of validity concerns, noncredible presentation, and secondary gain. The book provides further detail regarding the genuine challenges that arise in evaluating intellectually disabled individuals and methods to assist them without biasing the results. These first two chapters take up more than one quarter of the book. There is a thorough review of the history of SSA and the role of neuropsychology in evaluating intellectual disability claimants. The issue of validity testing is again covered and nested in SSA's historical opposition to such verification of data. The subsequent chapter on capital cases provides a concise review of the relevant law and cases followed by discussion of challenges in IQ assessment, functional skills assessment, and review of neurodevelopmental history. This provides sounds advice for any intellectual assessment, but incorporates the necessary pieces of a forensic evaluation. The unique challenges that come with waiving Miranda rights for a person with intellectual disability are explored, with references to studies looking at how individuals with different cognitive abilities response to Miranda warnings and decision-making errors they make with regard to waiving such rights.
Assessment: This is an excellent offering that continues in the rich tradition of the AACN Workshop Series. Readers will find the information illuminating for clinical practice, helpful for avoiding regulatory or forensic pitfalls, and easy to reference in a book of fewer than 200 pages.

Doody's Review Service

"For the experienced professional with limited experience conducting examinations for forensic purposes, this book will be a welcome guide, combining much useful research information with practical suggestions for practice. Throughout the book Chafetz places current research as well as traditional psychological, and modern neuropsychological, examination practices at the intersection with legal questions. His clear presentation of questions posed by the law, including an explication of key legal cases, will be especially helpful to practicing psychologists contemplating work in this field." —PsycCRITIQUES

"This is an excellent offering that continues in the rich tradition of the AACN Workshop Series. Readers will find the information illuminating for clinical practice, helpful for avoiding regulatory or forensic pitfalls, and easy to reference in a book of fewer than 200 pages. 5 Stars!" —Doody's

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