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29 June 2012 / Dr Chris Pamplin , Bernard Kat
Issue: 7520 / Categories: Features , Expert Witness
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No wizards or wands

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Chris Pamplin & Bernard Kat clarify the meaning of the term “psychologist”

In the 1990s, Duncan Scott, then the New Mexico Senator, became so fed up with psychological expert witnesses he proposed this amendment to a State Bill: “When a psychologist or psychiatrist testifies during a defendant’s competency hearing, the psychologist or psychiatrist shall wear a cone-shaped hat that is not less than two feet tall. The surface of the hat shall be imprinted with stars and lightning bolts. Additionally, a psychologist or psychiatrist shall be required to don a white beard that is not less than 18 inches in length, and shall punctuate crucial elements of his testimony by stabbing the air with a wand.”

The Ireland report

Most readers will think that goes a little too far. But the report Evaluating Expert Witness Psychological Reports: Exploring Quality by Professor Ireland of the University of Central Lancashire may give them pause for thought. A good deal of confusion has been thrown up by this report. Despite acknowledging that

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