The 1989 abduction of Jacob Wetterling riveted the nation and spawned modern sex offender registries. But would these laws have made a difference? A brilliant podcast explores.
Lynette 'Squeaky' Fromme was never sure why she pointed a gun at President Ford. But once she was found competent to stand trial, the outcome of her fateful decision was a foregone conclusion.
Until the data establish sexual addiction as a viable scientific construct, it’s yet another example of an over-eager industry putting the cart before the horse.
Like a wildfire, a moral panic over juvenile "superpredators" ignited in the 1990s and has burned out of control ever since, erasing the futures of untold children across America.
The Reid technique works great for getting suspects to confess to crimes. What it isn't so good at is distinguishing between true and false confessions.
Landmark verdict for psychologist who complained that incompetent defendants were being certified as fit to stand trial; may change future practices at large California state hospital.
The appellate court rejected civil commitment of a Native man who had rehabilitated himself in prison following his conviction for rape; future dangerousness not proven.
The 2008 murder of Larry King polarized the community of Oxnard, California. The chasm widened during the highly publicized trial of 14-year-old Brandon McInerney, who invoked a gay panic defense that blamed the transgender victim for provoking his own murder. Now, HBO is tackling the case with a moving and thought-provoking documentary.
In 1970, only Los Angeles had a police SWAT team. Now, every city's got one, and armored military vehicles are being used to serve routine drug warrants. In a culture of rampant fear, militarization looks like it is here to stay.
Despite increasing attention to the global problem of child sexual abuse, little is known about effective treatment and prevention methods. Worse, there is mounting evidence that some treatment may actually cause harm by cementing a deviant identity in people who are already at very low risk to reoffend.
The DSM-5 was not the revolutionary "paradigm shift" we were promised, but there are still plenty of pesky little changes that could cause big consequences in court.
In the wake of massive backlash from other mental health professionals and the public, the American Psychiatric Association's revolutionary "paradigm shift" fizzled into nothingness.
Women in the U.S. military face staggering rates of sexual assault. And the abuse doesn't stop there: Many are revictimized by their chains of command, often with bogus psychiatric diagnoses as a key weapon.
Modern bureaucracies contain the raw materials of inquisitions potentially far vaster and more destructive than anything wrought by the Catholic Church.
Accompanied by incendiary metaphors about ticking time bombs and hand grenades, the mantra is creeping into forensic psychology reports and court testimony. But is it really true?
We are a nation that glorifies violence. Where is the outrage over the killings of at least 176 children by unmanned drone strikes in Pakistan over the past seven years?
New documentary claims that thousands of mothers are forced to go on the run to protect their children from abusive fathers granted custody of children.
Hebephilia, or the sexual attraction to young adolescents, was one of three highly controversial new sexual disorders proposed for the upcoming fifth edition of the influential Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). All three were rejected.
The U.S. Supreme Court holds defendants to a higher standard when they seek to represent themselves. But no one intervened when one such defendant acted out a death wish.
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