Competency to stand trial evaluations: A state‐wide review of court‐ordered reports

Competence to stand trial (CST) evaluations are a critical part of certain criminal proceedings, and competence‐related evaluation and treatment are an increasing part of public mental health services. Whereas more research describes the defendants undergoing competence evaluations, less research ha...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Behavioral sciences & the law 2020-01, Vol.38 (1), p.32-50
Main Authors: Murrie, Daniel C., Gardner, Brett O., Torres, Angela N.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Base rates
Competence
Compliance
Court hearings & proceedings
Crime
Defendants
Evaluation
Health research
Mental competency
Mental health
Mental health services
Public health
Restoration
State courts
Statutes
Trials
Variability
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Competence to stand trial (CST) evaluations are a critical part of certain criminal proceedings, and competence‐related evaluation and treatment are an increasing part of public mental health services. Whereas more research describes the defendants undergoing competence evaluations, less research has examined the actual reports detailing those competence evaluations. This study reviewed 3,644 court‐ordered CST evaluation reports submitted by 126 evaluators in Virginia since Virginia initiated an oversight system allowing for comprehensive review. The base rate of incompetence opinions was 38.8%, but these rates varied significantly across evaluation type (initial versus post‐restoration efforts) and evaluators (ranging from 9.1% to 76.8% incompetence rate). Results suggest generally strong compliance with state statutes guiding CST evaluations, but also highlight marked variability in forensic conclusions and reveal a few areas in which some reports fell short of statutory requirements and practice guidelines.
ISSN:0735-3936
1099-0798
DOI:10.1002/bsl.2436