Medico-Legal Interventions in Management of Offenders with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)

Mela, Mansfield

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-20866-4_8

Cited by 7 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Staying with the legal system for a moment, FASD finds many individuals susceptible to victimization and unjust outcomes in the criminal justice system (Mela ; Theil et al. ; Streissguth et al.…”

Section: What Is Fasd?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Fictions of Prevention: Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder and Narratives of Responsibility

Stewart

2016

J Anthropology North Am

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In February 2016, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) sparked international outrage when it released a press release about safe drinking levels for women. In the name of preventing alcohol-exposed pregnancies, the Center asserted that all women who are not sterile are at risk of creating a child with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) if they drink alcohol and are not using contraception. The supporting info graphic also asserted that any woman who drank (while not using contraception) was at risk for a range of negative outcomes including sexually transmitted diseases, fertility problems, and injuries/violence. The press release and info graphic drew fire across social media and in the blogosphere (Tolentino 2016). While the problematic graphic was replaced (Taylor 2016), the message resonated. Criticism focused on questions about the infringement on women's reproductive rights as the CDC appeared to see all women's bodies as always already the vessels of the unborn. This eruption is the latest in a longer story about what it means to frame a disability as preventable. This article puts at the center of the analysis the prevention narratives that surround FASD by looking at contemporary legislative approaches in the US and Canada to address FASD. This article analyzes the fictions of prevention that surround FASD as these narratives not only serve to strip the very context within which the medical phenomenon occurs but also concurrently inform potentially damaging programs, practices, and policies including proposed legislative changes in North America. These legislative changes reflect the sentiment that women's bodies should be sites of intervention, even detention, in the name of reproducing "healthy," productive (future) subjects. We Start in Canada"It is not 100% preventable," Judy replied to my question, sternly adding, "it's not a very widely understood disability in the community." Judy was one of dozens of people I was interviewing in Canada's midwest about Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) and how it was understood in the justice system. Working for an advocacy group, Judy was in the business of assisting individuals and families with FASD to access resources and needed supports. Judy's comment was in direct opposition to most prevention messages that indicated FASD was 100% preventable. For Judy, this prevention narrative is flawed. FASD was not 100% preventable because Judy would argue that there are many contributing factors when discussing FASD, not least of which is the life circumstances of the woman, the supports available, and overall awareness of the pregnancy -all of which can be easily erased from the discussion when FASD is framed as 100% preventable.Judy was firm in her comments that day. Firm, perhaps, for a number of reasons not least of which was that she was rightly suspicious of a researcher who appeared focused on FASD in the justice system; research that can produce slippery associations and causal relationships between FASD and criminal activity. I have since come to bett...

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Section: What Is Fasd?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Fictions of Prevention: Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder and Narratives of Responsibility

Stewart

2016

J Anthropology North Am

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“…However, this same workforce is requesting information and ongoing training opportunities about FASD and other NDI, with almost all survey participants stating that additional knowledge would assist them with the daily management of detained young people (Passmore et al, 2018). There is a need for effective training interventions to be developed, implemented and evaluated among custodial workforces, to support the consistent and appropriate management of detained youth with impairments (Malbin, Boulding, & Brooks, 2010;Mela, 2016). This article reports on the evaluation of an innovative training intervention designed to upskill the custodial workforce in management strategies most effective for young people with FASD and other NDIs within the detention centre environment.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reframe the Behaviour: Evaluation of a training intervention to increase capacity in managing detained youth with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and neurodevelopmental impairments

Passmore

Mutch

Watkins

et al. 2020

Psychiatry, Psychology and Law

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The first study to investigate the prevalence of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) within an Australian juvenile detention centre has identified the highest known prevalence of FASD among a justice-involved population worldwide. However, there has been limited investigation into the capacity of the custodial workforce to identify and manage young people in Australian detention centres with FASD or other neurodevelopmental impairment (NDI), and no published interventions aiming to develop environments appropriate for those with FASD in justice settings. Using the Template for Intervention Description and Replication checklist, this study describes the conception, implementation and evaluation of a training intervention aiming to upskill the custodial workforce in the management of youth with FASD and NDI; 117 staff participated in the intervention, and 109 completed pre-and post-intervention surveys. Improvements were seen across almost all knowledge and attitude items, and the intervention was considered highly necessary, appropriate and valuable by the workforce.

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“…Deficits in understanding cause-and-effect lead to a lack of appreciation of the long-term consequences of behavior until law enforcement becomes involved (Brown et al , 2013). Individuals with FASD are also more likely to have a history of substance abuse and having been involved with the foster care system or child protective services, which are risk factors for criminal behavior (Mela, 2015; Wartnick and Carlson, 2011). In addition, FASD may contribute to a lack of empathy and remorse which, when coupled with heightened suggestibility, make it easier for antisocial peers to take advantage of them (Rogers et al , 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceptions of FASD by Minnesota public defenders

Brown

Cich

Singh³

2017

AMHID

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Purpose Persons diagnosed with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) are more likely to come into contact with the criminal justice system than general population controls. Although previous survey evidence has suggested that federal district attorneys are limited in their knowledge of the psycholegal impairments presented by defendants with this condition, such research has yet to have been conducted with state-specific public defenders. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach The Dillman Total Design Method was used to disseminate an electronic survey to public defenders in Minnesota. The survey included questions designed to measure their knowledge bases on and legal experiences with FASD. Surveys were completed by 135 respondents (nMen=63; nWomen=72) with an average of 16.22 years (SD=11.34) of legal experience. Findings Respondents varied in their knowledge bases on the cognitive impairments, social deficits, and physical complications characteristic of FASD. Less than 20 percent of respondents reported having received training on the psycholegal impairments experienced by individuals diagnosed with FASD from arrest until the start of adjudication, during adjudication, or during incarceration. Over 95 percent of respondents reported that they could benefit from a Continuing Legal Education course on the psycholegal impairments of individuals diagnosed with FASD, and over 90 percent reported that they could benefit from being provided the findings of a screening tool for FASD in their daily practice. Originality/value First survey of state public defenders’ perceptions of FASD.

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Medico-Legal Interventions in Management of Offenders with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)

Cited by 7 publications

References 17 publications

Fictions of Prevention: Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder and Narratives of Responsibility

Fictions of Prevention: Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder and Narratives of Responsibility

Reframe the Behaviour: Evaluation of a training intervention to increase capacity in managing detained youth with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and neurodevelopmental impairments

Perceptions of FASD by Minnesota public defenders

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