Brendan Dassey And Daryl Atkins Case Study
Brendan Dassey and Daryl Atkins: Two Court Cases Pertaining to Psychology
The cases of Brendan Dassey and Daryl Atkins demonstrate the roles of forensic psychologists in the court of law. Notably, the case of Brendan Dassey illustrates how a teen who had intellectual deficits was coerced into a confession (Nirider, Tepfer, & Drizin, 2012). Moreover, the case of Daryl Atkins exhibits an individual who was intellectually disabled and sentenced to death. Both these cases demonstrate some of the roles that forensic psychologists may play in police interrogations and court. In the case of Dassey, eyewitness identification procedures conducted by police were questionable and led to a false confession. Similarly, in Atkin’s case, the question of whether …show more content…
Atkins, an intellectually disabled individual, was sentenced to death for these crimes during his trial in Virginia. The defense relied on one expert witness, Dr. Evan Nelson, a forensic psychologist. Nelson evaluated Atkins and discovered that he had an IQ of 59 (Heilbronner, 2011). A score of 59, is considered mentally disabled. This meant that he was not able to fully reason and lacked the perspective and judgment he needed to understand the nature of the death penalty and why it was imposed (Fulero & Wrightsman, 2009). Shortly after, the Virginia Supreme court ordered a second hearing for Atkins because the first trial had used a misleading verdict. During the hearing at the Supreme Court, the state of Virginia presented an expert witness, Dr. Stanton Samenow, a psychologist. According to Samenow, Atkins was not mentally disabled (Heilbronner, 2011). Samenow believed that Atkins had an average level of intelligence that allowed him to understand the death penalty. Dr. Samenow also stated that Atkins was diagnosable for antisocial personality disorder (Heilbronner, 2011). This opinion did not sit well with the justices. In fact, many of the justices in this case dissented and stated that the execution of a mentally disabled individual, was not only prohibited by the eighth amendment, but it would not advance the deterrent purpose of the death penalty. In the end, Atkins was sentenced to life in prison rather than execution (Heibronner,
The cases of Brendan Dassey and Daryl Atkins demonstrate the roles of forensic psychologists in the court of law. Notably, the case of Brendan Dassey illustrates how a teen who had intellectual deficits was coerced into a confession (Nirider, Tepfer, & Drizin, 2012). Moreover, the case of Daryl Atkins exhibits an individual who was intellectually disabled and sentenced to death. Both these cases demonstrate some of the roles that forensic psychologists may play in police interrogations and court. In the case of Dassey, eyewitness identification procedures conducted by police were questionable and led to a false confession. Similarly, in Atkin’s case, the question of whether …show more content…
Atkins, an intellectually disabled individual, was sentenced to death for these crimes during his trial in Virginia. The defense relied on one expert witness, Dr. Evan Nelson, a forensic psychologist. Nelson evaluated Atkins and discovered that he had an IQ of 59 (Heilbronner, 2011). A score of 59, is considered mentally disabled. This meant that he was not able to fully reason and lacked the perspective and judgment he needed to understand the nature of the death penalty and why it was imposed (Fulero & Wrightsman, 2009). Shortly after, the Virginia Supreme court ordered a second hearing for Atkins because the first trial had used a misleading verdict. During the hearing at the Supreme Court, the state of Virginia presented an expert witness, Dr. Stanton Samenow, a psychologist. According to Samenow, Atkins was not mentally disabled (Heilbronner, 2011). Samenow believed that Atkins had an average level of intelligence that allowed him to understand the death penalty. Dr. Samenow also stated that Atkins was diagnosable for antisocial personality disorder (Heilbronner, 2011). This opinion did not sit well with the justices. In fact, many of the justices in this case dissented and stated that the execution of a mentally disabled individual, was not only prohibited by the eighth amendment, but it would not advance the deterrent purpose of the death penalty. In the end, Atkins was sentenced to life in prison rather than execution (Heibronner,