Competency to be executed and forced medication: Singleton v. Norris.

Restored to health to be put to death: reconciling the legal and ethical dilemmas of medicating to execute in Singleton v. Norris.

Sell v. U.S.: involuntary medication to restore trial competency--a workable standard?

Competency to Stand Trial (CST) evaluations are common in the U.S. criminal justice system. Of those defendants found Incompetent to Stand Trial (IST), psychotic disorders are the most common diagnoses, and active psychotic symptoms are strongly correlated with impairments in trial-related abilities. If a defendant is rendered IST because of psychosis, restoration will be unlikely without antip...

Forced Medication and Competency to Stand Trial: Clinical, Legal, and Ethical Issues

Psychotropic medications are often crucial in restoring criminal defendants to competency to stand trial. However, some defendants committed for competency evaluations or restoration refuse medications. Thus, psychiatric professionals who work in jails and secure hospitals, and even in community mental health settings, may encounter questions about involuntarily medicating patients who are inco...

Ferguson v. Florida: rationally understanding competence to be executed?

The U.S. Supreme Court addressed competency to be executed in Ford v. Wainwright, holding that execution of the insane violates the Eighth Amendment. More than 20 years later, the Court defined this standard in its landmark decision in Panetti v. Quarterman. The Panetti ruling held that an inmate's factual awareness of the reasons for his execution was not sufficient to determine his competence...

Self-medication and related factors among university students in Iran

Background and Purpose: Self-medication is a global medical issue, the rate of which has been reported to be on the rise in recent years. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence rate of self-medication and the associated factors among the university students of Ahvaz city, Iran. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at Jundishapur and Shahid Chamran univ...