Dr. Kruh Presents to Georgia DBHDD on Juvenile Criminal Responsibility Evaluations

On 9/8/23, Dr. Kruh presented a training on conducting criminal responsibility evaluations in juvenile court to forensic mental health evaluators and others at the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities Conference on Behavioral Health and the Law. In 2022, the Georgia Supreme Court held in the case of In the interest of T.B. that, excluding status offenses, juvenile respondents have a right to assert Georgia’s two affirmative criminal responsibility defenses – Insanity and Delusional Compulsion. Dr. Kruh reviewed the history of criminal responsibility defenses in juvenile courts in the United States across its 125 year history, presented the current status of juvenile criminal responsibility law nationally, discussed elements of adolescent development that make conducting these evaluations with juveniles different from evaluating adults, and offered practical guidance on how to conduct such evaluations consistent with best practices in the field.

If you are interested in having Dr. Kruh provide a training on juvenile criminal responsibility evaluations or in need of a juvenile criminal responsibility evaluation, please contact Dr. Kruh at [email protected].