Abstract
Empirical research has demonstrated a link between legal coercion and treatment engagement following conviction among those with severe personality disorder. Legal coercive pressures were often applied by the Indeterminate Sentence for Public Protection (IPP), until it was replaced by the Extended Determinate Sentence by the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012. In this paper, it is proposed that use of the new determinate sentence will lessen motivation for treatment engagement. One effect of treatment refusal may be greater reliance by the Secretary of State for Justice on his jurisdiction to transfer prisoners due for release to secure hospital transfers under the Mental Health Act 1983. Not only will this risk posturing undermine the principal aim of the Offender Personality Disorder Implementation Pathway to improve treatment engagement among the target group, it will also have negative implications for medical practitioners working in secure forensic hospitals. To demonstrate what is at stake, the paper briefly recapitulates empirical findings familiar to readers of the journal, before drawing on original unpublished data.
Highlights
In 2013, I reported on the findings of an Economic and Research Council (ESRC)funded grant looking at the legal, therapeutic and interrelational implications of transferring those with antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) from prisons to an experienced secure personality disorder ward within the medium secure estate (McRae, 2013)
Legal coercive pressures were often applied by the Indeterminate Sentence for Public Protection (IPP), until it was replaced by the Extended Determinate Sentence by the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012
The introduction of the LASPO 2012 stands to challenge the belief that offenders with severe personality disorder (SPD) can be inspired to engage in treatment to mitigate their risk, absent legal coercion
Summary
In 2013, I reported on the findings of an Economic and Research Council (ESRC)funded grant looking at the legal, therapeutic and interrelational implications of transferring those with antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) from prisons to an experienced secure personality disorder ward within the medium secure estate (McRae, 2013). One effect of treatment refusal may be greater reliance by the Secretary of State for Justice on his jurisdiction to transfer prisoners due for release to secure hospital transfers under the Mental Health Act 1983.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
