Forensic Psychologist

As a crime scene investigator it is their job to collect all of the evidence in a timely manner. Although, there are ways to collect the evidence it is very important to make sure that the evidence is collected correctly and properly. Now as a crime scene investigator I have arrived on a crime scene where there is a lot of evidence that needs to be collected. All of the evidence that needs to be collect for the case is drying blood on the floor, a hand gun, several shell casings near the victim, and some hairs that is still in the deceased victim’s hand. Therefore, I would start by taking pictures of the entire crime scene to ensure that everything is documented as it was found before I start to remove any of the evidence. Furthermore, I would ensure that I am at all times wearing latex gloves so that I don’t leave my own finger

The life of a forensic science technician is a special career for a special person. It requires certain skills and patience to be a forensic science technician. There are positives and negatives to being a forensic science technician.

The clinician develops a professional relationship with the client in order to assess and treat their disorder. A Forensic psychologist work requirements are different from a clinician in the field of psychology because the services he/she provides are in areas where they have specialized knowledge, skills, experience and education. He/she administers assessments to determine competency to stand trial and can testify as an expert witness. The forensic psychologist does not have a professional relationship with the client as their main focus is assessing the individual in order to submit a report to the court (Hubaboom, 2002).

Forensic Psychologists play important roles in our legal system, from collecting knowledge and applying it to the law to evaluating the defendants (Greene, 2014). Every case has different factors that effect which Forensic Psychologist will be needed to achieve finding the truth in the court. Likewise with every case, each defendant has their own accountant of what had happened to bring them before the court. In the cases of Alisha Waters and Shawn Smith an Applied Scientist could be called to be an expert witness in both cases. In Adam Parker’s a Forensic Evaluator was called in to evaluate his mental state.

At the moment, I am still unsure of what major and career I am going to pursue. I am looking into different fields and what would interest me, and at the moment I am looking toward photography related fields. One career that I have been interested in lately is a forensic photographer, or crime scene photographer. They are called to crime scenes in order to take photographs for the law enforcement, so they can study them for future purposes. Cases can take months or even years to solve, so these photographs help preserve the original scene and evidence. Not only do they take pictures of the overall scene, but of different objects in the room or area as well to give investigating officers a feel of what happened.

A forensic examiner is a scientific professional who collects, analyzes and reports on crime scene evidence. While most work in law enforcement labs or offices, some work in the field collecting and recording evidence.

Mokokoma Mokhonoana once said, “Science gave us forensics. Law gave us crime.” Forensic science has been used since the late 1700’s to determine the guilt or innocence in major criminal cases by comparing the similarities in DNA. Fingerprinting dates back thousands of years to when the Chinese used it to identify business documents. I want to become a forensic technician because I have always been fascinated by crime shows like CSI and Criminal Minds.

By definition in the Specialty Guidelines for Forensic Psychologists, ‘psychologist’ refers to persons who, in accordance with the American Psychological Association (APA) or state registration/licensure, practice psychology in a professional capacity. A ‘forensic psychology’ is the act of working, professionally, as a ‘psychological expert’ within the court system. Finally, a ‘forensic psychologist’ is the aforementioned psychologist working in the also defined field of forensic psychology (Committee on Ethical Guidelines for Forensic Psychology, 1991, p. 657).

An expert witness (forensic psychologist) will be asked by the jurisdiction court’s the following questions (Specialty Guidelines for Forensic Psychology, 2013). For instance, determination questions that will let the courts know how this expert witness is actually trained to be an expert witness (Specialty Guidelines for Forensic Psychology, 2013). The qualifications of an expert are skills, experience, education, knowledge, and training (Specialty Guidelines for Forensic Psychology, 2013). The expert witness may bear witness to that in the form of a judgment or else, if (1) the evidence is founded upon adequate evidence or statistics, (2) the evidence is the creation of dependable values and procedures, and (3) the witness has theoretical principles and procedures consistently to the evidence of the case (Specialty Guidelines for Forensic Psychology, 2013). However, as specified, the rule

Forensic psychiatry is an extended part of psychiatry that handles with the treatment of mentally disordered prisoners, hospitals, and the community. A forensic psychiatrist is a medical doctor trained in law and mental health. The psychiatrist evaluates the facts and the mental state and addresses the information found on the defendant to the lawyer at that moment. The medical doctors specialize in psychiatry and sub specialize in forensic psychiatry. This whole entire process takes around 13 years. Forensic psychiatry gives expert witness a given chance in court, helps make ideas for defense tactics and sentencing, helps solve crimes, and treat mental illness in defendants or criminals.

Psychologist that specializes in the psychological knowing of legal matters and cases (can be civil or criminal)

Forensic nursing is a unique profession that encompasses a wide variety of specialties. The profession is based on an integral practice model, which means that nurses take on a more holistic approach of care (Dossey, 2008). The forensic nurse fits many of the roles Cherry and Jacob (2014) describes in their book. The nurse is a care provider and advocate for their clients and provide education and counseling on resources available. Additionally, due to the nature of the profession, forensic nurses must be a leader and manager working with multidisciplinary teams and use their expertise to improve the profession. I will focus on advocacy and research for the purpose of this assignment.

Depending on their professions, a person must acquire a certain set of skills or qualities to become successful in their career. In the case of a criminal investigator, he/she must have communication, and problem-solving skills, along with integrity and empathy. When an investigation is in action, an expert criminal investigator would gather information through physical evidence, witnesses to analyze any evidence leading the case being solved.

The psychologist contributes to investigations criminal behavior by profiling and similar techniques. The criminal psychologist can also assist with pretrial methods. This subsection is highly important because it includes the evaluation and treatment of suspects, victims, or witnesses of a crime. The primary task of the forensic psychologist profiling. Psychological profiling involves “investigating an offender's behavior, motives and background in an attempt to further guide an investigation…,” (APA). There are several different areas of profiling that the professionals do in the field. In criminal profiling the psychologist analyzes the emotional, mental disposition of a suspect. While remaining as a slightly controversial technique, profiling has become an increasingly prominent part of criminal investigation. When used properly it has the capacity of being one of law enforcement’s most powerful tools.

A Forensic Psychologist focuses on “why people do bad things, why they commit crimes, lie to police officers, and treat their children abusively” (AllPsychologyCareers). There is this fascination with criminals and the psychopathy behind their actions and thoughts. According to All Psychology Careers, this field of study focuses on all types of research in psychology including clinical, developmental, social, clinical, behavioral and neuropsychological to blend together ideas and studies to apply to criminal action. The major focus of forensic psychologist is criminology and law because there needs to be a broad understanding of how the judicial system works and what statutes apply in what states. This type of work can be applied in many different settings such as prisons, correctional facilities, court systems, government agencies, parole boards and research.