Clinical vignettes illustrate the dynamic inter-relation between the different components of judgment and the importance of judgment evaluation in criminal law.

Clinical material confirmed our basic hypothesis, that judgment can be considered as preserved when all three components are intact or when only one is impaired, though not sufficient to effect the other two. When two components are impaired, it inevitably leads to insult of the third component and to judgment impairment as a whole, resulting in criminal irresponsibility. In cases of severely ill mental patients, where all three components of judgment are impaired, the individual lacks criminal responsibility even when no clear connection between psychotic production and behavior can be proved.

Judgment concept and its components will enable mutual understanding and construct a common basis of working alliance and common knowledge for both medical and law people.

a group of 305 male subjects aged 20-43 y.o. participated in military operations and exhibited ICD-10 specified symptoms was studied. Of this group 174 subjects committed different personal crimes after their return into the peaceful socium.

In subjects, manifested violent behaviour, PTSD was dominated by symptoms of intrusion (the repeated experience of stress situation) in the form of obsessive ideas, fantasies and reminescences; in dreams and nightmares; in situations associated with stress experience as well as the symptoms of hyperexitation (irritability, inclimation to conflicts, unstable mood). More over, combinations of these symptoms with feeling of “psychologically toxic guilt; including the guilt for the cruilty at war, the fault for those who had to stay at war, and the guilt for those who fell in battle. In combatants without violent manifestation in time of peace PTSD was determined by the symptoms of the “escape” against the background of vegetative and psychosomatic disorders associated with rudimentary unstable symptoms of intrusion and hyperexitation.

The revealed qualitative personal disorders may be considered as predisposing factors or the reasons of the combatant's socially dangerous behaviour.

The aim of this study was to assess how intelligence factors influence the ability of subjects to show themselves in socially desirable manner while being assessed by some psychological instruments.

The sample consisted of 80 subjects (40 non-psychotic patients and 40 graduate high school students) to whom the test Amoral 15 (measuring antisocial tendencies within three general factors of amorality: amorality which rise from impulsivity, frustrations and brutality) was administered in two different situation - with the standard instruction (E1) and with the instruction to fake(E2). The (El-E2) difference is taken as an objective measure of ability to fake good. For measuring intelligence we administreted Ravens Matricess.

Results showed that not all of the subjects are able to present themselves in socially desirable manner even when they are told to do so. Namely, 25% of subjects worsened their result while 50% of them showed the same result which they reached under the standard instruction (E1). Another 25% subjects improved their results but not in the way which can jeopardize tha rank of subjects who are at the bottom on the Amoral-15 scale. The results showed that there is no significant Pirson's correlation between showing in socially desirable manner and inteligence which means that intelligence does not influence the ability of subjects to estimate what tests are actualy measuring.

Further research is needed, particularly the impact of personality dimensions related.

The homicide phenomenon is a complex phenomenon that enhances Man complexity. This study aims to contribute to a better understanding of this phenomenon and its protagonists.

Data were collected from clinical records of a Forensic Psychiatry Unit (Magalhaes Lemos Hospital) using a specific clinical protocol, being selected those with “homicide or homicide attempt” as the motive for evaluation.

The sample was mainly formed by men (94.4%M vs. 5.6%F), with an average age of 37.78 years-old (sd +- 13.63), mostly single (n=25; 53.2%) and unemployed (n=24; 44.4%). The majority of the individuals were detained in a prisional facility (n=35; 64.8%). Thirteen of the victims were first degree relatives to the murderers. Homicide was consumed in 29 cases and in 25 of them it was a failed attempt. Twelve individuals (22.2%) were under suspicion of drug abuse (mainly alcohol) at the moment of the crime. The murderers percentage with psychiatric surveillance was 40.7% (n=22); 90.7% (n=49) had a psychiatric diagnosis and 27.8% (n=15) had a Psychotic Disorder. There were found a significant number of individuals with mental retardation and personality disorder. The conclusion of psychiatric forensic evaluation was “criminal responsibility” in thirty individuals (55.6%). Twenty individuals were considered “not criminally responsible” and psychiatric treatment and security measures were proposed.

The homicide act of the individuals proposed for Forensic Psychiatric evaluation seems to be an isolated phenomenon that appears mostly in individuals with mental illness, often those having alcohol abuse or dependence.

The Community Forensic Mental Health (CFMHT) was set up in late 2005 as part of a regional development to address the needs of mentally ill offenders in Northern Ireland and to provide a seamless service to clients coming through the Medium Secure Unit in Belfast.

The CFMHT developed vision and mission statements.

To improve the mental health and well-being of people with mental disorders, to ensure equal access to services in the least restrictive environment. To minimise offending behaviours, maintain the individual's safety and that of the community, thus enabling this group of people to reintegrate into society.

To provide a holistic approach to meet the needs of people with mental disorders who are at serious risk of engaging in offending behaviours, thereby reducing the risk in the community.

The Northern Trust CFMHT took part regionally in drawing up agreed protocols and functions between Mental Health and Criminal Justice, which has been sent to Heads of Service. This document describes how a CFMHT will function at four levels of intervention.

Level 1 – a one-off specialist consultation with the Community Mental Health Team.

Level 2 – in-depth risk assessment/ management plan with the referring team retaining responsibility.

Level 3 – agreed period of shared responsibility with referring team.

Level 4 – CFMHT taking full responsibility for duration of need.

There are plans to develop a base where therapies will be carried out, allowing for a safe environment for interviewing and assessing.

Accumulating evidence supports the hypothesis that antidepressant treatment prevents suicide. Most of this evidence consists of studies demonstrating decreases in suicide in parallel with increased use of antidepressants in different populations. Since ecological studies cannot establish causality, this individual-based study, analyzing temporal patterns in the toxicology of all suicides in Sweden 1992-2005, aimed at testing the hypothesis that the substantial decrease in suicide during the period was caused by the increased use of antidepressants.

During the eleven years, 16,937 suicides, and 33,426 controls (natural or accidental deaths) were investigated by toxicological screening. The annual numbers of detections of antidepressants, zolpidem, zopiclone, tramadole, and dextropropoxyphene were analysed in suicides and controls.

The annual number of suicides decreased by 332 cases (18.6 %). The expected number of antidepressant positive suicides, as determined only by their increased use in controls, was 741. If the decrease in suicide was caused by antidepressants, the expected number of suicides with antidepressants in toxicology should be reduced with 332 cases i.e. 409. If the decrease in suicide was not caused by antidepressants the expected number of positive cases should be reduced by 18.6 %, i.e. 603. The observed number was 420, indicating causality. The other drugs were detected as expected if they had not caused the decrease in suicide.

This controlled individual-based naturalistic study indicates that the increased use of antidepressants was the cause of the decrease in suicide previously demonstrated in ecological studies. Definite conclusions cannot be drawn, however.

Domestic violence against women is a serious problem in Russia. The main purpose of this investigation was to find out origins of crimes of violence in women.

A cohort of 25 females was examined by psychiatrists and forensic psychiatrists. All women had committed murders. Details of background, psychiatric and offending history were extracted.Each item was assessed with the help of descriptive statistics.

A research has been carried out on the basis of psychiatric and forensic psychiatric assesment of two groups of women who had a long history of violence by their husbands or partners. Clinical picture of their state was presented by depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, PTSD, drug abuse. The research has revealed two types of homocides. Women of the first subgroup displayed pathological altruistic motivation of murder of their children (4 females). Women of the second subgroup (21) had committed homocides of their husbands or partners whose violence towards women escalated in severity.

The research shows the necessity of domestic violence prevention by legal provisions and multidisciplinary research with participation of psychiatrists, psychologists, human rights advocates.

Verification of forensic functionality of two psychiatric classification systems (ICD 8 and ICD 10), determination of similarities and differences between them, and evaluation of difficulties in subsuming particular psychiatric diagnoses into legal categories.

The retrospective method was used, based on comparison of the information from forensic psychiatric expertises made in the Center for forensic psychiatry, Vrapce Psychiatric hospital in Zagreb, in two periods: during 1968 and 1995, chosen at random up to the total of 300 expertises related to criminal law. The shortened version of standardized FPDS (Forensic Psychiatric Documentation System) questionnaire was used, which was modified for the purpose of the study and, due to the necessary reduction of the data for statistical analysis, the questionnaire was additionally shortened to the final version which consists of 51 items.

The basic hypothesis that there is a difference in the level of forensic functionality of the two classification systems compared in this study was only partially confirmed. The other hypothesis, that psychiatric classification system ICD-10 is more functional in forensic psychiatry than classification system ICD-8, is not completely confirmed either. The questionnaire can be also used in other similar studies for evaluation of forensic-psychiatric expertises. The results can be of help in everyday practice in forensic psychiatry, in the field of expertise and in the field of forensic psychiatric treatment.

Convicted people with serious mental disorders are subject to release from punishment.

To bring out criteria determining release from punishment because of mental disorder.

81 convicted people were studied, who had been previously examined by psychiatrists in order to assess the possibility of release from punishment.

According Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, if after committing crime a person develops a mental disorder that disables him either from realizing actual character and social danger of his behaviour (inaction) or from controlling it, is released from punishment, and a person already serving a sentence is released from further serving it. Such people are referred to a compulsory psychiatry treatment.

80% of convicted people released from punishment because of mental disorder were diagnosed with schizophrenia, 8% - with dementia, 7% - with organic mental disorders, 5% had a different diagnosis.

availability of either psychotic mental disorder or dementia; statement of mental disorder intensity depriving a convicted person of the ability to “either realize actual character and social danger of his behaviour (inaction) or control it”, to understand the purpose of punishment, essence of remedial and educational measures applied to him; sufficient duration; availability of pronounced tendency to psychopathologic disorder amplification, its progressive dynamics; pessimistic prognosis in clinical, social, correctional and labour aspects with regard to the term for serving punishment; considerable dysadaptation (microsocial, secure, occupational) disabling from application of correctional measures to a convicted person and from his detention.

Stalking involves repeated and persistent attempts to impose on another person unwanted contact and/or communication. It can have a significant adverse impact on psychological, occupational and social functioning. Mental health professionals are at greater risk than the general population of being stalked.

We assessed the prevalence of stalking behaviour by patients towards psychiatrists working in a large mental health organisation in London, UK.

A questionnaire was sent to all 324 psychiatrists in the service. Stalking was defined as two or more episodes where a patient initiated inappropriate contact outside the normal clinical setting, which caused concern. The response rate was 61%.

Forty-one doctors (21%) were stalked by patients. Most victims were consultants (n=31; 76%). No sub-speciality was over-represented. Most patients had a diagnosis of personality disorder (n=16; 39%) or psychotic illness (n=10; 24%). The majority of stalkers (n=24; 59%) were male, while 49% of victims were female. Sixty-one percent of stalkers were reported to have a previous history of harassment.

Duration of stalking ranged from several weeks to 16 years, with 51% occurring outside the work environment. On average, victims experienced two types of inappropriate contact, most commonly by telephone (n=22; 54%), letter (n=19; 46%) or face-to-face (n=15; 37%). Ten patients loitered while 3 carried out surveillance. Physical threats were made against 14 psychiatrists. None were assaulted.

Stalking by patients towards psychiatrists is common and represents an occupational risk. Healthcare organisations should introduce formal training programmes covering recognition of stalking behaviour and risk-management strategies.

A long tradition of research has highlighted the continuity of mental health disorders between childhood and adulthood. Nevertheless, diagnostic systems have not kept pace with the lifespan concepts that underpin developmental psychopathology. While several important adult diagnoses have been identified in children (Anxiety, Depression) using Research Diagnostic Criteria, few disorders specific to childhood (e.g., ADHD) have equivalents in the adult diagnostic systems (e.g., DSM-IV-TR)

In this paper I describe the continuities and discontinuities of the DSM in terms of childhood disorders with and without adult equivalents. I also describe the current state of program development in our health region and the future steps in that reflect the translation into clinic practice of the body of knowledge related to developmental psychopathology.

A review of the DSM-IV-TR was completed

The demographic and clinical characteristics of the identified population (transitional youth aged 16 to 24) was explored by doing a cross reference of both the RAIS and MHIOS data bases.

There are DSM-IV-TR differences between child and adult diagnoses: these differences give rise to clear implications for treatment path.

Much work needs to be accomplished to ensure that children have appropriate treatment across the transition to adulthood. The follow areas are recommended for development: Develop curricula for the residency training program and for existing professionals. Develop practice guidelines a mechanism for continuous social marketing within the health care community.

To analyze the relationship between sociodemographic and clinical data in a sample of involuntarily admitted patients to an acute psychiatric hospital.

Retrospective sociodemographic and clinical data regarding patients involuntarily admitted in a psychiatric clinic were gathered and statisticaly analyzed.

Of all the patients 33% were unemployed, 30,8% finished high school, 62,8% were single (unmarried, divorced or widow). 33% had no previous history of psychiatric admission. 64,6% had an aggressive behavior against a family member or another person previous to the admission. The most frequent diagnosis of involuntarily admission was psychomotor agitation (61,5%) and was significantly associated with the presence of delusions. Differences found between men and women: men were significantly more aggressive than women and had more frequent substance or alcohol abuse than women, women were involuntarily admitted for a longer period of time than men and had a more frequent diagnosis of psychotic disorder than men. Lack of compliance with the treatment previous to the admission was not significantly associated with the aggressive behavior or the presence of delusions.

The majority of involuntarily admitted patients were unemployed, single, with aggressive behavior, delusions and a history of previous psychiatric admission. Differences regarding the gender were noted in terms of substance and alcohol abuse and the involuntarily admitted period.

The aim of our study was to investigate what are the real objectives of the validation scales.

The sample consisted of 80 subjects (40 non-psychotic patients and 40 graduate high school students) to whom the Amoral-15 scale measuring antisocial tendencies was administered in two different situations - with the standard instruction (E1) and with the instruction to fake the responses (E2). The difference between E1 and E2 was taken as a measure of the ability to fake well. We correlated differential score (E1-E2) with the validation scales (the mix of Marlow-Crown and Eysenck's L scale from the EPQ). NEO-PI-R was administered under standard instruction to measure basic personality dimensions.

Results indicated no significant correlation between the ability to fake good and the scores on validation scales. In some items we found negative correlation which means that subjects who better present themselves in social desirable way have lower scores on the validation scales. By Hierarchical regression analyses we found that about 40% of variance on validity scales could be explained by Emotional Stability, Agreeableness and Conscientiousness and not by ability to fake food.

Socially desirable answers are serious problem in personality assessment and cannot be solved by giving the validation scales because these scales are measuring the basic personality dimensions and not the ability to fake good.