Criminal Court

Our reputation for delivering well-reasoned, evidence-based recommendations makes us a trusted resource in criminal court matters. Our team of experienced forensic psychologists specializes in understanding the psychological factors influencing criminal behavior.

Risk Assessment

Violence risk assessments are becoming increasingly common in the criminal justice system. Our providers are trained in completing thorough violence risk assessments, which include evidenced-based procedures to help clinicians identify historical and clinical risk factors for violence as well as protective factors.

Violence risk assessments help to identify situations where an individual may be more likely to be violent in the future and identify protective factors and management techniques that can mitigate future violence risk.
A systematic evaluation that assesses someone’s potential for engaging in acts of violence (i.e., risk of violence in the workplace or school) and helps to identify and mitigate the risk of potential violence.

A threat assessment typically includes a forensic interview, psychological testing, interviews and consultation with collateral sources (e.g., police, teachers, family members, administrators, school officials), record review, and risk assessment.
Analyze behavioral cues and personality traits that may play a factor in increasing/decreasing violence.

Provide individualized interventions for specific threat levels.

Provide management strategies to deal with current and future threats that may include coordination with law enforcement, identifying mental health resources, incorporating an individual’s support system, and adopting strategies to monitor compliance and supervision to ensure public safety.
Threats against a specific target (e.g., I am going to place a bomb in the school cafeteria tomorrow.)

Indirect Threats (e.g., If I wanted to, I could kill everyone at this school.)

Veiled Threats (e.g., I would be better off without you around anymore.)

Conditional Threats (e.g., If you don’t give me a raise, I will bomb the office.)

Sanity Evaluations

The affirmative defense of insanity requires a defendant to demonstrate he or she was suffering from a mental infirmity, disease, or defect at the time of the alleged offense which significantly impaired his or her ability to know the nature, consequences, or wrongfulness of their actions.

Sanity evaluations focus on the defendant’s symptoms and functioning at the time of the offense and typically include a forensic interview, a discussion of the circumstances surrounding the offense, review of available records, and collateral interviews.

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Psychosexual Evaluations

Psychosexual evaluations (PSE) are widely used by attorneys and courts to assess a person’s risk of engaging in sexual abuse and/or repeating a sexual offense.

A comprehensive assessment of individuals suspected of engaging in sexual abuse/sexual violence (e.g., child sexual abuse, child pornography, sexual assault, voyeurism).
A PSE typically includes a forensic interview, psychometric testing, psychophysiological measures of sexual arousal, record review, collateral interviews, and a risk assessment.

It is a forensic assessment of a person's sexual and psychological functioning that helps:

To identify sexual deviance and paraphilic disorders.

Risk of engaging in sexual abuse and/or risk of reoffending.

Identify sex-specific treatment needs to address problematic and/or illegal sexual behaviors.

Propose a treatment plan and supervision needed for court-mandated sexual offenders.

To determine whether contact with minors is safe in criminal and family law cases.
Risk of engaging in the sexual abuse of a child in a divorce case.

Risk of engaging in a sexual offense in a criminal case.

Mitigation

A mitigation evaluation includes a forensic interview, review of available records, psychological testing, and collateral interviews to identify if a defendant presents with any mitigating circumstances for the court’s consideration to justify a downward departure in sentencing and to humanize the defendant in the eyes of the court.

Mitigating circumstances can include, but are not limited to:

Youthful age of the defendant
Need for mental health treatment
Need for substance abuse treatment in nonviolent felony offenses
Being an accomplice or minor participant in the offense
Substantial impairment in the capacity of the defendant to conform their behavior to the law or appreciate their behavior
Acting under duress or domination of another person.

Competency

Competency to proceed evaluations assess whether a defendant in criminal proceedings has a mental illness or cognitive defect that impairs their ability to understand their legal situation and rationally participate in the court process.
Competency evaluations are a functional assessment of a defendant’s present abilities to consult with counsel and to have a factual and rational understanding of the proceedings against them. If an expert finds that a defendant is incompetent to proceed, appropriate treatment recommendations are offered to the court.
Intellectual disability or Autism (Our providers are Agency for Persons with Disabilities (APD) approved evaluators)

Competency to Waive Miranda Rights

Competency of Witnesses to Testify (Child and Adult)

Competency to Participate in Post-Conviction Proceedings

Competency to be Executed (Death Penalty)

Psychological Affiliates is the premier provider of therapy and psychological assessment in Florida