What is civil commitment? correct answers Involuntary hospitalization when they are a danger to
themselves or others
List 2 types of forensic evaluations done in civil courts. correct answers Parental fitness
Civil competencies (execute a will, enter into a contract, medical/mental health, manage
financial affairs)
Child custody
List 2 different ways that civil commitment differs from criminal commitment. correct answers
Civil is preventative, not punitive.
Burden of proof in civil is preponderance; burden of proof in criminal is beyond a reasonable
doubt
What are Sexually Violent Predator (SVP) laws? correct answers A petition to commit sex
offenders after their criminal sentence(s).
What are the 2 main questions that psychologists need to assess when conducting evaluation for
personal injury lawsuits? correct answers Current conditioning of plaintiff.
Cause of psychological issue.
Is it fixable? How?
Name the four goals of punishment. correct answers Deterrence, Rehabilitation, Incapacitation,
Retribution
Name 2 alternatives to traditional sentencing of offenders. correct answers Drug and mental
health courts
Restorative justice
Public shaming
, Provide 2 pieces of information about incarceration rates in the US today. correct answers US
rates a 6 times the world average: We have 5% of the world's population and 25% of its prisoners
• Young black males-> 1 in 9 will be incarcerated
What are 2 pieces of evidence to suggest that prison is not a general deterrent to crime? correct
answers • States with 3x laws have higher crime rates
• The US has higher homicide rates
Provide 2 ways that sentencing for sex
offenders differs from sentencing for
other types of offenders. correct answers 1) SO's are prohibited from living within certain
distances of schools, day-care facilities, and other places where children are likely to be and
2) they can be involuntarily committed civilly to a mental health facility following the
completion of their sentence.
How do death penalty trials differ
from regular criminal trials? correct answers In death penalty trials, all of the jurors must be
"death qualified", meaning that they are all, to some degree, for the death penalty and are not in
anyway morally opposed to it. Jurors are also given more complex set of instructions from the
judge outlining their duties and explain how to evaluate and weigh aggravating and mitigating
circumstances to reach a sentencing decision.
Provide an example of an aggravating factor and an example of a mitigating factor in a death
penalty trial. correct answers Aggravating factors in a death penalty case would be elements of
the crime, such as the heinous details of a murder. Mitigating factors are elements of the
defendant's background, such as a history of mental illness or acting under duress at the time of
the event.
Provide 2 pieces of evidence that suggest