Tan Davin, Friedman Susan Hatters, Armstrong Caleb, Fitzgerald Judge Tony, Neumann Chelsea
Mason Clinic, Regional Forensic Service, Auckland, New Zealand.
Department of Psychological Medicine, University of Auckland, New Zealand.
Psychiatr Psychol Law. 2017 Nov 27;25(3):374-385. doi: 10.1080/13218719.2017.1396867. eCollection 2018.
International research suggests that a proportion of youth facing legal charges are at risk of being unfit (or incompetent) to stand trial. In New Zealand, only a fraction of youth coming before Youth Court are referred for fitness to stand trial evaluations. Amid debate surrounding notions that youth offending could be deterred by providing harsher penalties, it is important to consider fitness to stand trial in youth facing criminal proceedings. This study sought to capture a cross-sectional view of how fitness (competency) to stand trial is addressed in the Youth Court, and how evaluator opinions relate to ultimate court findings. A retrospective review of reports for fitness to stand trial in 79 youth consecutively referred to the Regional Youth Forensic Service from 2010 to 2015 was conducted. Data were combined with Youth Court outcomes obtained from the Ministry of Justice. The mean age is 15.6 years. Intellectual disability is associated with unfit opinions and legal findings ( = .002 and = .03, respectively), and cases disposed through the Intellectual Disability (Compulsory Care and Rehabilitation) Act 2003. Immaturity itself does not appear to have a significant effect on evaluator opinions or court findings of fitness to stand trial. The majority of the referred youth were both opined and found fit.
国际研究表明，面临法律指控的一部分青少年存在受审能力不足（或无行为能力）的风险。在新西兰，只有一小部分在青少年法庭受审的青少年被转介进行受审能力评估。在围绕通过加重刑罚来威慑青少年犯罪这一观点的辩论中，在面临刑事诉讼的青少年中考虑受审能力很重要。本研究旨在全面了解青少年法庭如何处理受审能力（诉讼能力）问题，以及评估人员的意见与法庭最终裁决之间的关系。对2010年至2015年连续转介至地区青少年法医服务机构的79名青少年的受审能力报告进行了回顾性审查。数据与从司法部获得的青少年法庭结果相结合。平均年龄为15.6岁。智力残疾与无受审能力意见和法律裁决相关（分别为 = .（此处原文可能有误，推测为p值）002和 = .03），以及通过2003年《智力残疾（强制护理和康复）法》处理的案件。不成熟本身似乎对评估人员的意见或法庭关于受审能力的裁决没有显著影响。大多数被转介的青少年被评估人员认定有受审能力且法庭也判定其有受审能力。
