Deck 8: The Role of Mental Illness in Court

Question 1

What standard is the insanity defence in Canada based on?

A) McNaughton Standard
B) Fitness Standard
C) Irresistible Impulse Standard
D) American Law Institute Standard of Insanity
E) Criminal Lunatics Standard

Answer 1

McNaughton Standard

Question 2

In Canada,which of the following would be allowed to conduct court-ordered assessments of fitness to stand trial and criminal responsibility?

A) an experimental forensic psychologist
B) a clinical forensic psychologist
C) a medical doctor
D) a psychometrist
E) all of the above

Answer 2

a medical doctor

Question 3

? Which of the following fitness instruments involves uncompleted sentences that the defendant must finish?

A) Fitness Interview Test-Revised (FIT-R)
B) Competency Screening Test (CST)
C) Competency to Stand Trial Assessment Instrument (CAI)
D) Interdisciplinary Fitness Interview (IFI)
E) MacArthur Competence Assessment Tool-Criminal Adjudication (MacCAT-CA)

Answer 3

Competency Screening Test (CST)

Question 4

What is the current insanity defence in Canada?

A) not guilty by reason of insanity
B) not guilty because of mental illness
C) guilty but mentally ill
D) not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder
E) none of the above

Question 5

The issue of a defendant's fitness may be raised:

A) at the beginning of the trial
B) when entering a plea
C) when a defendant chooses not to be represented by counsel
D) during sentencing
E) all of the above

Question 6

Historically,the key case that was used in the context of determining the fitness standard was:

A) R. v. Taylor
B) R. v. Prichard
C) R. v. McNaughton
D) R. v. Swain
E) Winko v. British Columbia

Question 7

? Which of the following statements concerning the defendant's fitness to stand trial and the insanity defence is true?

A) With fitness you are assessing past mental condition (at time of offence); with the insanity defence you are assessing current mental condition.
B) With fitness you are assessing current mental condition; with the insanity defence you are assessing past mental condition (at time of offence).
C) With fitness and the insanity defence, you are assessing past mental condition (at the time of the offence)
D) With fitness and the insanity defence, you are assessing current mental condition.
E) With fitness and the insanity defence, you are assessing both past mental condition (at time of offence) and current mental condition.

Question 8

What is the name of the law that led to the implementation of community treatment orders for mentally ill individuals?

A) Winko's Law
B) Brian's Law
C) McNaughton's Law
D) Swain's Law
E) Peel's Law

Question 9

Of the few defendants that raise the insanity defence in the United States,about _______ are successful.

A) 5%
B) 10%
C) 15%
D) 20%
E) 25%

Question 10

When may the Crown raise the issue of insanity in Canada?

A) prior to the start of a trial
B) after a guilty verdict
C) if expert evidence is available
D) if the defendant exhibits deviant behaviour during the trial
E) never, only the defence may raise the issue

Question 11

According to research by Zapf and Roesch (1998),defendants found unfit to stand trial are more likely than fit defendants to:

A) have been previously incarcerated
B) have an extensive criminal background
C) suffer from a substance abuse disorder
D) meet the criteria for a psychotic disorder
E) all of the above

Question 12

? According to American data,what proportion of felony cases will argue an insanity defence?

A) less than 1%
B) 10%
C) 25%
D) 30%
E) 40%

Question 13

In Canada,the following elements must be present for criminal guilt:

A) a wrongful deed
B) mens rea
C) criminal intent
D) actus reus
E) all of the above

Question 14

In Canada,the ____________ is the instrument used to assess criminal responsibility.

A) MacCAT-CA
B) FIT-R
C) R-CRAS
D) NCRMD
E) IFI

Question 15

As currently specified in the Canadian Criminal Code,a defendant is unfit to stand trial if he or she is:

A) unable to plead to the indictment
B) unwilling to testify in his or her own defence
C) hostile toward members of his or her defence team
D) unable, on account of a mental disorder, to understand the possible consequences of the proceedings
E) suffering from schizophrenia

Question 16

In Canada,what initial screening instrument is typically used for determining fitness to stand trial?

A) Fitness Interview Test-Revised (FIT-R)
B) Competency Screening Test (CST)
C) Competency to Stand Trial Assessment Instrument (CAI)
D) Interdisciplinary Fitness Interview (IFI)
E) MacArthur Competence Assessment Tool-Criminal Adjudication (MacCAT-CA)

Question 17

When a defendant is found unfit to stand trial,the most common form of treatment for restoring fitness is:

A) cognitive therapy
B) medication
C) behaviour therapy
D) psychodynamic therapy
E) client-centred therapy

Question 18

According to Bill C-30,the entire length of detention that a defendant can be held in custody before the fitness evaluation is completed cannot exceed:

A) 24 hours
B) 5 days
C) 30 days
D) 60 days
E) none of the above

Question 19

In conducting a fitness evaluation in Canada,criteria related to a defendant's understanding of the nature of the proceedings may include:

A) having factual knowledge about the criminal procedure
B) understanding the role of key participants in the trial
C) understanding the severity of the charges
D) understanding the arrest process
E) all of the above

Question 20

According to Bill C-10,a court can stay the proceedings of a defendant who is unlikely to become fit if:

A) the accused is unlikely ever to become fit
B) the accused poses no threat to the public
C) staying the proceedings results in the proper administration of justice
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 21

When a defendant is found not criminally responsible,a review board will take into account:

A) criminal history
B) risk assessment
C) charge information
D) trial transcript
E) all of the above

Question 22

Which of the following dispositions can be made following a finding of NCRMD?

A) detention in a psychiatric facility
B) absolute discharge
C) conditional discharge
D) all of the above are potential dispositions
E) none of the above

Question 23

The option by which mentally disordered offenders are placed directly into a treatment program rather than go through the court process is called:

A) capping
B) diversion
C) prima facie
D) conditional discharge
E) absolute discharge

Question 24

The Canadian court case associated with defences of automatism is:

A) R. v. Stone
B) R. v. Prichard
C) R. v. Swain
D) R. v. McNaughton
E) none of the above

Question 25

Which of the following statements is true regarding mentally ill offenders in Canada?

A) Mentally ill offenders typically have more extensive criminal records than offenders without a mental illness.
B) Mentally ill offenders are more likely to recidivate (reoffend) compared to violent offenders without a mental illness.
C) Mentally ill offenders are significantly less likely to receive a conditional release from prison than offenders without a mental illness.
D) Mentally ill offenders are more likely to be conditionally released as a result of mandatory supervision, whereas offenders without a mental illness are more likely to receive a conditional release due to parole.
E) All of the above

Question 26

In the context of a defendant found NCRMD,what are the four main criteria considered by courts and review boards when deciding a disposition?
Explain the term capping and specify the consequence of capping for mentally ill offenders.

Question 27

According to prevalence rates of psychiatric disorders in a sample of Canadian defendants (Bland et al.,1990),almost 90% of male defendants from the Edmonton Remand Centre were found to suffer from:

A) an affective/mood disorder
B) antisocial personality disorder
C) substance abuse
D) schizophrenia
E) an anxiety disorder

Question 28

Name two of the three changes to legislation resulting from Brian's Law (Bill 68).

Question 29

A successful noninsane automatism defence will result in a verdict of:

A) not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder
B) not guilty and the defendant is released with no conditions
C) guilty with prison term
D) not guilty and the defendant is sent to a mental health facility
E) none of the above

Question 30

What is the name of the current insanity defence in Canada?
According to the Canadian Criminal Code,what are the criteria for insanity?
Assuming you are the Crown prosecutor,identify two situations in which you may raise the issue of insanity.

Question 31

You have been hired by a Canadian lawyer to assess a defendant for competency to stand trial.As a first step,you have decided to conduct a competency screener.Describe the screener that you will use and justify your choice.

Question 32

What are three explanations proposed by Bland et al.(1990)for the high rates of mental illness in offender populations in Canada?

Question 33

Which of the following examples would likely be recognized by Canadian courts as a defence of noninsane automatism?

A) stress
B) excessive state of grief
C) self-induced intoxication
D) sleepwalking
E) extreme state of anxiety

Question 34

Which of the following is not a scale included in the R-CRAS?

A) cognitive control
B) behavioural control
C) psychopathology
D) current emotional state
E) organicity

Question 35

What are the three dispositions that can be made following a finding of NCRMD?

Question 36

The two key treatment options for mentally disordered offenders who experience symptoms such as hallucinations,suspicion,and noncompliance with medication are:

A) self-paced therapy and behaviour therapy
B) self-paced therapy and drug therapy
C) antipsychotic drugs and behaviour therapy
D) psychodynamic therapy and behaviour therapy
E) drug therapy and psychodynamic therapy

Question 37

According to your text,two of the greatest predictors of future violence in offenders are:

A) schizophrenia and prior violence
B) prior violence and substance abuse
C) substance abuse and schizophrenia
D) major affective disorder and prior violence
E) schizophrenia and major affective disorder

Question 38

In a study by Rice and Harris (1990),defendants found not criminally responsible were compared to a matched group of convicted offenders.When looking at post-release recidivism,the not criminally responsible group had _______ rates of general recidivism and ________ rates of violent recidivism compared to the matched group of offenders.

A) lower/lower
B) higher/higher
C) lower/higher
D) higher/lower
E) equal/lower

Question 39

What are the four main objectives of mental health courts?