NCJ Number
80043
Journal
Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 26 Issue: 4 Dated: (October 1981) Pages: 782-792
Date Published
1981
Length
11 pages
Annotation
A forensic psychiatry clinic's records on 64 defendants who were indicted for sex offenses and referred for psychological assessment were studied with respect to the diagnoses, the signs of organic impairment of mental functioning, and the intelligence of the sex offenders.
Abstract
The cases were selected from the 1973-79 records of the forensic psychiatry clinic serving three boroughs of New York City. Most of the defendants were under age 30, and 44 had not completed 12 years of education. A total of 30 of the defendants had no work skills, 24 had never been employed, and 42 had histories of psychiatric or medical-neurological treatment. Rape was the most frequent sex offense in the sample, while sodomy was the second most frequent sex offense. The sample's main diagnostic category was personality disorder, which applied to 33 subjects. The schizophrenia category included 30 subjects. Only six subjects suffered from organic central nervous system impairment. The great majority of the sample scored in the normal range on the full scale intelligence quotient of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale. Findings indicated that clinicians trained in adolescent psychiatry and the problems of young adults may be particularly suited to work with this class of defendants. In addition, remedial education and vocational evaluation and training may be important components of programs dealing with these offenders. Results also revealed the need for detailed histories rather than only an assessment of current functioning and the need for long-term mental health treatment for personality disorders. Tables, 10 references, and a discussion of limitations of the sample selection and the results are provided.