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  • Judging homicide defendants by their brains [Elektronski vir] : an empirical study on the use of neuroscience in homicide trials in Slovenia
    Hafner, Miha, 1986-
    This paper presents a study that analyses all available homicide trials in Slovenia between 1991 and 2015 for neuro-evidence. Almost every fifth case discusses neuroscience. The most prevalent type ... of neuro-evidence is neuro-psychological testing, less common are structural neuroimaging and electroencephalography, while we discovered no use of functional neuroimaging.Thetwo largest categories of neurological conditions suffered by defendants aretraumatic brain injury and brain damage dueto long-term alcohol and drug abuse. When presented, neuro-evidence affected courts% decisions in 85% of trials (15% of all tried homicide cases) and had an impact on the criminal sentence or another outcome of the trial in 79% of cases. By far most often neuro-evidence affects decisions regarding criminal capacity, ie insanity and (substantially) diminished capacity, which, in turn, strongly reflects in criminal sanctions. Neuroscience information istypically usedto mitigate or even reducethe sentence, but never as an aggravating circumstance. It is also frequently utilized to support decisions about medical security measures (compulsory psychiatric treatment). This study further suggests that the double-edged sword of neuroscience is an elusive concept and that the mechanism by which neuroscience affects courts' decisions in civil-law systems is different from the one in common-law jurisdictions.
    Source: Journal of law and the biosciences. - ISSN 2053-9711 (Vol. 6, iss. 1, oct. 2019, str. 226-254)
    Type of material - e-article
    Publish date - 2019
    Language - english
    COBISS.SI-ID - 2133070

    Link(s):

    https://academic.oup.com/jlb/advance-article/doi/10.1093/jlb/lsz006/5480080
    DOI

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