Forensic Evaluations for Offenders With Dementia in Taiwan's Criminal Courts

摘要

Dementia is an increasing world-wide health problem, and the association between dementia and adjudication of crimes has rarely been studied. The data in this study are described and analyzed by gender, psychiatric diagnosis, type of crime, and the acceptance rate by the courts of opinions tendered by forensic psychiatric examiners. The source data are derived from the databank of the Judicial Yuan (Judicial Department) of the Republic of China Law and Regulations Retrieval System. There was a male predominance of 85.1 percent. Larceny (42.6%) was the most frequent crime. There was also a high judicial acceptance rate of 91.5 percent of the professional opinions received from forensic psychiatric evaluators who examined defendants at the request of the courts. Psychiatrists play an important role in providing their professional opinions for the Taiwanese courts with regard to adjudication of evaluees with dementia. Most courts accepted psychiatrists' professional opinions about offenders with dementia, and the rate of acceptance was reflected in the judicial rulings of criminal responsibility. Dementia is an increasing worldwide public health problem with a current prevalence that ranges from 5 to 10 percent in Europe and the United States in people older than 65 years. In Taiwan, the prevalence rate of dementia in elderly people ranges from 1.7 to 5.1 percent.sup 1