Assessment of Criminal Responsibility: Empirical Advances and Unanswered Questions

Abstract

Clinical issues in the assessment of criminal responsibility have been largely obscured by the emotional and political responses to Hinckley's acquittal. In spite of this, empirical advances have recently been made in the evaluation of insanity which include progress toward standardizing screening procedures with the MSE, and the operationalizing of legal standards with the R-CRAS. Important questions remain on the influence of extraclinical factors, effects of new statutory proposals, and an etiological understanding of psychotically based criminal behavior.