Officer Tim Bronson, badge #3293 was dispatched at 21:00 to 4321 West Jefferson

Question

Officer Tim Bronson, badge #3293 was dispatched at 21:00 to 4321 West Jefferson on October 3rd. The purpose of the call was to respond to a reported burglary in the vicinity. Dispatch provided that alleged perpetrator had been described as a Caucasian male, approximately twenty to twenty-five years of age with a light build, wearing a blue jeans and a white zipper up hoody jacket.

Officer Bronson observed a young man on a nearby street that seemed to match the description provided by dispatch. When Officer Bronson attempted to make contact with the young man, the young man fled down the street. Officer Bronson gave chase, and was able to capture and subdue the suspected burglar. The suspected burglar was identified as Carl Davidson.

Officer Bronson placed Mr. Davidson under arrest for a violation of burglary statutes.

Explain the process of arrest, how are they placed under arrest, what does it mean to be arrested
Explain the process of arraignment, what occurs during the arraignment process
Explain what occurs during pretrial
Explain what happens if the offender is in need of a competency hearing, including a definition competency.
Assess the role of a psychologist in a pretrial competency hearing. Describe what type of assessment tools psychologist use to assess competency for trial.

Explanation / Answer

Arrest means a detaining of a person suspected of committing a crime. Usually, force is used if the criminal is resisting arrest, handcuffs and further, a prison cell is used to confine the person suspected of the crime. The defendant's rights are also spoken by the arresting officers in many countries.

Arraignment is the process of formally informing the criminal of the charges against him/her. The defendant must either plead guilty or innocent.

Pretrial is a formal meeting of the legal officials in charge of the case, to discuss the case before the actual trial. Prosecutors and defence lawyers shape the upcoming proceedings, where certain terms and conditions of the trial or at times, content to be disclosed to a jury is discussed.

Competency, in general, refers to the ability to do something efficiently or successfully. A competency Evaluation is an assessment conducted by a psychology professional to evaluate defendant's state of mind, ability to understand and participate effectively in the trial. Upon the evaluation of the defendant by a competent professional. The judge finally decides the competency of the defendant, whether or not s/he is fit to participate in the trial.

Forensic Psychologists and/or Psychiatrists must evaluate behaviour, thought processes and cognitive abilities of the defendant among other things. Behaviour is important as it may give clues to underlying mental dysfunctions. Thought processes can determine if the defendant is psychotic, depressed or has any other mental illness. along with these two, cognitive abilities like logical thinking, problem solving, processing and comprehending information, understanding consequences, etc. Educational background, Lying tendencies, Moral reasoning, personality tests and Intelligence tests can give the further summative evaluation of the defendant and thus predict competency for the upcoming trial.

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