True Detective

This assignment supports the following unit learning outcomes:

• Examine the application of psychological constructs to the field of forensic psychology.
• Consider the ethical issues in the field of forensic psychology.
• Examine the role of mental health in the field of forensic psychology.
• Describe the role of forensic psychologists.

Overview

Your final project for this class will build throughout the term by adding something new each week. Please take the time to look at the other units. Each week, you will have an objective and instructions to meet your objective. We suggest that to save you time, keep a running document – in other words, add each new unit assignment to previous units in a single document as you progress. Each unit should be labeled clearly.

Disclaimer: These assignments are being completed as illustrations for this class. If you were to actually perform any of the duties discussed, you will need additional training and experience. At this point, you are not qualified to perform any of these duties, and your responses to assignments are solely for the purposes of this class.

Week 1: Case Selection

Objective: Choose a case involving a convicted individual. We will pretend that they may be eligible for retrial or probation, and you have been called in as an expert witness, either for your criminal justice or psychology knowledge. It is fine if the defendant is deceased, but that cannot be used as a reason why they cannot get a retrial or probation.

Instructions:

• Select a case with enough public information to analyze.
• Briefly describe the individual(s), their criminal history, and the legal context.
• Submit a short rationale explaining why this case is suitable for evaluation.
• This should be 2-3 pages with scholarly references.

In choosing your case, you might consider a high-profile case or individual, or you can consider the Innocence Project. Whichever you choose, make sure that this case interests you enough to work on it for the next six weeks. This will be the case that is used for the entire class

Submit:

• Please submit this essay as a Word document.

**APA Format & Requirements**

Content: Expresses content knowledge with the assignment purpose in a complete, organized, clear, professional, and culturally respectful manner.

Analysis: Constructs concepts related to course content, demonstrates strong analytical skills with strong evidence to support professional and personal subject knowledge through details, supporting evidence, and idea differentiation.

Technology: Manipulates multiple technological resources to effectively implement all assignment requirements.

Writing: The assignment exhibits an excellent command of written English language conventions. The assignment has no errors in mechanics, grammar, or spelling