DEMYSTIFYING DEATHS –THE ROLE OF FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM

Abstract

With the changing nature of crime and the cognitive process of the individuals, the investigative agencies face emerging challenges where they have to catch up with new technological development rather formal investigation for demystifying evil mind. The police and judiciary are rendered clueless either over the equivocal deaths or by the defense of general exceptions of IPC contented by the persons accused of crime. At this juncture they endeavor the assistance of the sophisticated techniques in detecting the crime. Thus, a collaborative environment of medico-legal fields is mandated for inquest in an expertise way to expose the actual mind behind an anti-social incident. Thus, from forensic anthropology, forensic pathologists to forensic entomology exists. Howsoever the evidence assessed through these techniques are only corroborative rather substantive. It is the need of the hour to make a paradigm shift from due process to crime control model whereby the former views there have to be certain lines even for the detection of crime which states cannot bypass whereas latter considers that the highest goal of any state should be accurate solving of crime .Considering the interest of society due accreditation should be given to forensic psychological techniques and to the evidence assessed.

Howsoever the current paper centralizes on

• Demystifying equivocal deaths –by Psychological autopsy.
• Determination of the state of mind or mens rea of an alleged individual at the time of perpetrating an offence –as against the plea of innocence .
• Evidentiary value of the assessments of forensic psychologists.