School of Law, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland; School of Medicine, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland.
School of Law, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland.
Int J Law Psychiatry. 2021 Mar-Apr;75:101683. doi: 10.1016/j.ijlp.2021.101683. Epub 2021 Mar 6.
People with intellectual disabilities (PWID) are over-represented in criminal justice systems globally. This over-representation reveals itself at once in the demographic make-up of prison populations, as well as those detained in police settings as suspects of crime. While it is well-established in international literature that individuals who find themselves in the latter scenario face particular challenges in negotiating the forensic formalities routinely followed by the police at the pre-trial stage of criminal proceedings on account of their impairments, the specific difficulties experienced by PWID as suspects within Ireland's criminal justice system has yet to be explained, or indeed, understood. In seeking to address this research lacuna, this paper yields an account of a qualitative study which was aimed at identifying the unique challenges which PWID face in their interactions with Law Enforcement Officials (LEOs) in Ireland.
This study aimed to elicit perspectives across a range of disciplines with regard to barriers for PWID interacting with LEOs in Ireland, and sought viewpoints on the content of a proposed awareness programme.
A survey using purposive sampling was used to elicit viewpoints from people from representative organisations for PWID, people working with voluntary organisations for PWID, healthcare professionals working with PWID and professionals from the criminal justice system (including members of An Garda Siochana, lawyers, members of the Irish judiciary and officials within the Airport Police). Data were anonymised at the point of collection. Qualitative thematic analysis was conducted to extract themes based on the data retrieved through the survey.
Ninety-five (n = 95) responses were received from individuals reporting a cumulative experience of 1537 person-years. Respondents identified themselves as members of one of three groups; people working in a voluntary or representative organisation for PWID (n = 42, 44.2%); people working in healthcare (n = 31, 32.6%); and people working in law enforcement (n = 22, 23.1%). Three themes were identified from the qualitative thematic analysis. The first theme, "Barriers to Communication", identified challenges which PWID and LEO experience in their mutual interactions and communications with one another. The second theme, "Building Awareness and Skills", identified elements of an ID awareness programme for LEOs. The third theme, "Institutional and System Change", identified possible lines of innovation with respect to contemporary police practice and the availability of supports for both PWID and the LEOs who work with them.
ORIGINALITY/VALUE: This study represents the first dedicated qualitative inquiry conducted on a multidisciplinary level into the barriers which healthcare professionals, legal professionals and disability advocacy groups perceive to be faced by PWID in their interactions with LEOs in Ireland. Consequently, the findings from this study will act as a valuable template in the direction of informing the development of an ID awareness programme for LEOs in Ireland. In addition, these research findings are expected to usefully inform the development of national policy and protocols in areas related to health, disability and justice. In offering a rich evidence-base for future policy initiatives, the timing of this study is particularly significant. The recent ratification by Ireland of the UN Convention for the Rights of People with Disabilities (UNCRPD), together with the synchronous emergence of an evolving emphasis on human rights-based policing at a national level in Ireland, has meant that Irish policymakers have a unique opportunity to re-imagine the pre-trial formalities of Ireland's criminal process in order to demonstrate an increased sensitivity to the needs of PWID. Securing equal access to justice for such individuals, it is important to emphasise, is a legal requirement pursuant to Article 13 of the UNCRPD. To the extent therefore that this study yields unique insights into the barriers faced by PWID in their interactions with LEOs, the results of this study are potentially generalisable to other jurisdictions that have ratified the UNCRPD and are developing policy to accord with Article 13.
全球范围内，智障人士（PWID）在刑事司法系统中人数过多。这种过度代表不仅体现在监狱人口的人口统计学构成中，还体现在作为犯罪嫌疑人被警方拘留的人群中。尽管国际文献已经充分证实，由于自身残疾，后者在刑事诉讼预审阶段警方通常遵循的法医程序中面临着特殊的挑战，但爱尔兰刑事司法系统中作为嫌疑人的 PWID 所面临的具体困难尚未得到解释，甚至尚未被理解。为了解决这一研究空白，本文介绍了一项定性研究，旨在确定 PWID 在与爱尔兰执法官员互动时所面临的独特挑战。
本研究旨在从一系列学科的角度征求意见，了解 PWID 与爱尔兰执法官员互动的障碍，并就拟议的意识计划的内容征求意见。
使用目的抽样法进行了一项调查，以征求代表 PWID 的组织、为 PWID 提供志愿服务的组织、为 PWID 提供医疗保健服务的专业人员以及来自刑事司法系统的专业人员（包括爱尔兰警察总局的成员、律师、爱尔兰司法机构的成员和机场警察的官员）的意见。在收集数据时对数据进行了匿名处理。根据通过调查获得的数据，进行了定性主题分析以提取主题。
从报告总计 1537 人年经验的 95 名（n=95）受访者那里收到了 95 份回复。受访者将自己标识为以下三个群体之一的成员；为 PWID 提供志愿服务或代表组织的人员（n=42，44.2%）；在医疗保健领域工作的人员（n=31，32.6%）；以及执法人员（n=22，23.1%）。从定性主题分析中确定了三个主题。第一个主题是“沟通障碍”，确定了 PWID 和 LEO 在相互互动和沟通中所面临的挑战。第二个主题是“提高意识和技能”，确定了针对 LEO 的 ID 意识计划的要素。第三个主题是“机构和系统变革”，确定了当代警察实践方面的创新路线以及为 PWID 和与他们一起工作的 LEO 提供支持的可能性。
原创性/价值：本研究代表了第一次在多学科层面上对医疗保健专业人员、法律专业人员和残疾倡导团体认为 PWID 在与爱尔兰执法官员互动时所面临的障碍进行的专门定性研究。因此，本研究的结果将作为为爱尔兰 LEO 制定 ID 意识计划的宝贵模板。此外，这些研究结果有望为相关领域的国家政策和协议的制定提供有用的信息，这些领域包括健康、残疾和司法。在为未来的政策倡议提供丰富的证据基础方面，这项研究的时机尤其重要。爱尔兰最近批准了《联合国残疾人权利公约》（UNCRPD），同时在国家一级同步出现了对基于人权的警务的重视，这意味着爱尔兰政策制定者有机会重新构想爱尔兰刑事程序的预审程序，以展示对 PWID 需求的敏感性增加。必须强调的是，确保 PWID 平等获得司法救助是一项法律要求，依据是《联合国残疾人权利公约》第 13 条。因此，这项研究对 PWID 与执法官员互动中所面临的障碍提供了独特的见解，因此研究结果可能适用于其他已经批准《联合国残疾人权利公约》并正在制定符合第 13 条的政策的司法管辖区。
