FORENSIC EVALUATIONS
CHILD CUSTODY EVALUATIONS
Child Custody Evaluations are initiated by a Court Order. Attorneys representing parents agree to the appointment of Dr. Crabtree as the Custody Evaluator. Parents are then asked to meet with Dr. Crabtree and will undergo an interview process in addition to psychological testing. The children involved in the case will also be evaluated. Dr. Crabtree will review all testing results and documents along with any additional collateral sources that were consulted. In all, the evaluation takes approximately eight weeks to complete. A final report will be sent to both attorneys and to the court.
PERSONAL INJURY
When an individual is physically hurt due to the negligent action of another person, psychological injuries may also occur. To determine the existence of a psychological injury, we work with attorneys to determine if an evaluation for the individual is necessary. An evaluation typically includes a review of existing documents, interviews with the injured party, administration of psychological tests, and a detailed final report.
CHILD MALTREATMENT
Dr. Crabtree served as a Psychological Consultant to Washington County Children and Youth Services for six years. During his time spent serving Children and Youth Services, Dr. Crabtree authored of over 700 reports. His evaluation of the agency focused on children, parents, and other caregivers.
At Washington Psychological Services, we provide evaluations of parents and caregivers as an independent evaluation of the parents’ psychological fitness. This evaluation typically includes an interview with the parents, a review of available records, administration of psychological tests, and the collection of information from collateral sources. From the analyzed information, a determination is made of whether a diagnosis is present in addition to a detailed conclusion about parenting capacity.
PARENT CHILD INTERACTION
Parent Child Interaction Evaluations are ordered when courts or child welfare agencies want to see whether a healthy relationship exists between a child and either the parent or caregiver. These evaluations typically start with an interview of the parent and possibly the child. An empirically-based observational process then follows to evaluate the interaction between the child and the caregiver. A report is authored describing the nature of the caregiver-child relationship.
SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY
There are times when an attorney representing an individual thinks that an independent Psychological Evaluation is necessary when the individual is applying for Social Security Disability benefits. The Social Security Disability Evaluation usually occurs after an individual has initially been declined for benefits and when the case is being appealed by the attorney. Our employs a review of the records, an interview with the individual, appropriately chosen psychological tests (either intellectual, personality, or both) and a written report.
PROBATION OFFICE
As a condition of probation, many times the Court requests an evaluation of individuals who are being placed on probation. Our evaluation consists of an interview, review of records, administration of psychological tests and a final concluding report
JUVENILE PROBATION OFFICE
A Juvenile Probation Officer or Master may direct the juvenile to undergo Psychological Evaluation as a part of the individual’s probation. The evaluation is used to determine if there are mental health issues that need to be addressed as a condition of the probation. Our evaluation entails an interview with the juvenile and with family members, the administration of psychological tests both to the juvenile and to the parents, a review of existing records, and a completion of a Psychological Report with recommendations for treatment.
COMPETENCY EVALUATIONS
Competency Evaluations can be carried out for either civil or criminal cases. In civil cases, the typical presenting issue is a question of whether someone is capable of making decisions independent of a guardian or other Court representative. Criminal Competency Evaluations typically address the question of whether someone is capable of participating in aspects of the judicial process.
CIVIL COMPETENCY EVALUATIONS
We use interviews and tests that address the specific limitation that an individual may have. For example, if an individual is reported to have dementia, tests evaluating the person’s intellectual capacity would be administered in addition to an interview with the individual and typically a family member or representative.
CRIMINAL COMPETENCY EVALUATIONS
Will typically involve an interview with the accused, a review of existing records, administration of intellectual evaluation, administration of Evaluation of Competency to Stand Trial and consultation with collateral sources of information. A report then addresses an individual’s competency in all spheres as it related to the court proceedings.
MITIGATION EVALUATIONS
Sometimes criminal behavior is affected by the individual’s level of intellectual functioning or their personality structure. Mitigation Evaluations assist the Court in determining if an individual has limitations that may have affected their capacity to carry out any criminal activity. Because these evaluations depend a great deal upon the specific characteristics of the individual or the charges against them, consultation with the referring attorney needs to take place before a specific plan of action and cost can be determined.
RISK ASSESSMENT
Risk Assessment Evaluations are carried out to determine if an individual is capable of continuing to operate safely and/or appropriately within a specific social environment such as work or a school situation. Typically, the evaluation begins when someone of authority in the school or work environment sees behavior that could put either the individual or others at risk. The question for the evaluator then is to determine whether this behavior indicates anything of a psychological nature that would make the person a risk. This evaluation includes interview, a summary of the problem from the referring source, a review of existing documents, psychological testing and production of a report.