Psychiatric, neurological, and psychoeducational characteristics of 15 death row inmates in the United States

American Journal of PsychiatryPublished 1 July 1986

Dorothy Otnow Lewis, Jonathan Pincus, M Feldman, Lisa Jackson, Barbara Bard

DOI10.1176/ajp.143.7.838

Source URL

Citations206

SJR quartileQ1

SJR score5.27

SNIP3.68

TL;DR

It is concluded that many condemned individuals probably suffer unrecognized severe psychiatric, neurological, and cognitive disorders relevant to considerations of mitigation.

Abstract

The authors present the results of clinical evaluations of 15 death row inmates, chosen for examination because of the imminence of their executions and not for evidence of neuropsychopathology. All had histories of severe head injury, five had major neurological impairment, and seven others had other, less serious neurological problems (e.g., blackouts, soft signs). Psychoeducational testing provided further evidence of CNS dysfunction. Six subjects had schizophreniform psychoses antedating incarceration and two others were manic-depressive. The authors conclude that many condemned individuals probably suffer unrecognized severe psychiatric, neurological, and cognitive disorders relevant to considerations of mitigation.

Keywords

PsychologySocial Sciences

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