Incorporating index offence analysis into forensic clinical assessment

Abstract

Purpose. Assessment is a core skill of clinical and forensic psychology practice and forms the basis of all ongoing engagements with offender/patients. In forensic settings, assessment involves the systematic gathering of reliable data on the characteristics of offenders and the offences which they have committed in order to develop understanding of the dynamics of offending and relevant intervention strategies. However, whilst the assessment process is aided by various protocols, no such instrument appears to exist for the assessment of an offender/patient's index offence. This paper presents a draft ‘index offence analysis guide’ designed by the present authors for this purpose and which has been piloted on prisoners and patients in secure settings. Argument. Evidence suggests that for various reasons, many clinicians do not routinely review crime scene data while working with offenders. However, this practice is arguably questionable, because how can decisions about admission, amenability to treatment, risk of reoffending, and discharge be made if there is limited awareness of what the offender/patient has done? The present authors argue that knowledge of the index offence is important to understanding the offender and suggest this can be obtained using a guide such as the one presented here. This is illustrated with an anonymous case. Conclusion. Index offence analysis should be a core task of any forensic clinician engaged in the assessment of offender/patients as it can provide a better understanding of crime scene actions and offence motivations. This can help guide treatment planning and improve risk assessments.

Homicide offenders 32 years later – A Swedish population‐based study on recidivism

“…This is compatible with findings from England and Wales (McCarthy et al, ), where recidivism was more likely among offenders who killed a stranger rather than a spouse. Consequently, our results lend support for the argument that an offence and victim analysis is an important component of a risk and need assessment of homicide offenders (see also West and Greenall, ).…”

“…Prevention of such recidivism is thus warranted not only for victims and their families but also in order to maintain confidence in the justice system and to ensure that the rehabilitation of offenders is safe and effective. Such prevention requires data on recidivism, not the least for decisions on leave as well as on release from prisons and discharge from forensic hospitals (West and Greenall, ).…”

Evaluation of the ADViSOR project: Cross‐situational behaviour monitoring of high‐risk offenders in prison and the community

“…This may relate to inconsistencies often found between verbal and non‐verbal behaviours in prison or special hospitals. The Weisbuch et al (2009) study supports the view of West and Greenall (2011), and an earlier observation by McDougall and Clark (1991), that verbal and physical behaviour of offenders were frequently contradictory. This is unsurprising given that interviews are still an important aspect of assessment for release.…”

“…Results from the current study support the notion of consistency of non‐verbal behaviour across context and time. In the MAPPA process account is taken of both verbal and non‐verbal behaviour of the offender and these are likely to interact in forming conclusions about risk, which may reduce the accuracy of the assessment (McDougall & Clark, 1991; West & Greenall, 2011). The findings from this study indicate that the MAPPA process should take note of instances when these two channels of communication are contradictory, in order to confirm assessments of risk.…”

“…More widely, there is strong support for a move away from group-based actuarial methods of risk assessment towards a case formulation approach (Hart, 2010) and this may be important where predictions are made about individual cases. West and Greenall (2011) have argued that, in the case of serious crimes such as homicide, a thorough index offence analysis is crucial to clinical assessment. They claim that an over-reliance on the self-report of the patient/offender reduces the accuracy of the assessment.…”