Forensic Psychology And The Criminal Justice System

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Forensic psychology represents the meeting point connecting psychology and the criminal justice system. Forensic psychology encompasses comprehending justice legislation in the applicable jurisdictions in order to be able to appropriately interrelate with judges, attorneys and other criminal justice professionals. An essential characteristic of forensic psychology is the capability to make statements under oath in court as an expert consultant and witness.

This is performed by reformulating psychological conclusions into the legal idioms of the courtroom and providing data to criminal justice professionals in a way that can be comprehended. In order to be a reliable expert witness, the forensic psychologist is required to have a comprehensive …show more content…

Forensic psychology has been formally recognized by the American Psychological Association, APA. Psychology is defined as the science of mental behavior and mental process. Forensic is defined by the performance of different scientific procedures and measurements that develop into the discovery of a criminal offense. Forensic psychology can be ultimately defined as the implementation of psychology in accessing mental processes and behavior processes with.in the application to several justice systems when combined together.

The forensic psychologist required to possess a plethora of knowledge equally in the criminal justice, law and psychology in order to appraise and development an expert opinion established on evidence, evaluations, and assessments. Several historical benchmarks in the forensic psychology field have occurred over the last century. A prime example of this benchmark is the case United States vs. Driver in 1921. This case was the first time an American psychologist gave expert testimony as an expert witness in a court …show more content…

The clinical psychologist also provided expert testimony during the court proceedings regarding the plaintiff’s medical condition. During testimony, the clinical psychologist stated that the plaintiff qualified to receive the disability benefits. When this point was made, the defense objected. The judge subsequently informed the jury to discount the complete testimony of the clinical psychologist. This was on the basis that the clinical psychologist was stating his opinion. Soon after the initial decision; a court of appeals held that the clinical psychologist’s testimony should have been admitted during the court trial. The court of appeals also held that the psychologist was an expert

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