Scott Charles L
University of California, Davis Medical Center, 2230 Stockton Boulevard, 2nd Floor, Sacramento, CA 95817, USA.
Psychiatr Clin North Am. 2006 Sep;29(3):791-804. doi: 10.1016/j.psc.2006.04.002.
Psychiatrists conducting forensic evaluations of defendants facing a potential death penalty must understand the legal and ethical parameters governing these assessments in addition to the important clinical issues. Important areas to review with each defendant include the role of the evaluator, the party requesting the evaluation, circumstances in which the evaluation is not confidential, the nature, scope, and purpose of the evaluation, and the parties to whom the results of the evaluation are to be forwarded. In those circumstances in which the defense attorney has not retained the psychiatrist, the defendant's attorney must be aware that an evaluation has been ordered by the court or requested by the prosecution. The psychiatrist also must be prepared for passionate challenges to their findings from the defense or prosecution and in some instances for vigorous attacks on their own personal ethics. To weather such storms, the mental health evaluator must base their opinion on objective evidence rather than letting any personal bias guide their assessment.
对面临潜在死刑的被告进行法医评估的精神科医生，除了重要的临床问题外，还必须了解指导这些评估的法律和道德参数。与每位被告审查的重要领域包括评估者的角色、请求评估的一方、评估不保密的情况、评估的性质、范围和目的，以及评估结果将转发给哪些方。在辩护律师未聘请精神科医生的情况下，被告的律师必须知晓评估是由法院下令或由检方请求进行的。精神科医生还必须做好准备，应对辩护方或检方对其调查结果的激烈质疑，在某些情况下，还要应对对他们个人道德的猛烈抨击。为了经受住这些风暴，心理健康评估者必须将他们的意见建立在客观证据的基础上，而不是让任何个人偏见指导他们的评估。
