Seattle University Collaborative Projects - International Academy of ...

etween female inmates occurred on a continuum, ranging from verbal intimidation to homicide.Violence was most prevalent at the lower end of the continuum and quite rare at the extreme end.Based this mixed method study conducted in 2008, this second phase collected quantitative dataon the perceptions and perspectives of almost 4000 women on various dimensions of prison andjail safety. The survey was designed to address six general areas of conflict or violence: inmateeconomic conflict, inmate sexual violence, inmate physical violence, staff verbal/sexualharassment, staff sexual misconduct, and staff physical violence. Inmates were asked to ratestatements according to the perceived seriousness of the problems they personally encountered intheir current housing units. This presentation will describe the substantive findings of the surveyand provide recommendations for improving policy and practice in women’s correctionalfacilities.Exploration of Laws Regarding the Criminalization of Sexual Contact BetweenClients and Mental Health ProfessionalsJames J. Cassidy, University of New Haven (jcassidy@newhaven.edu)Fadia M. Narchet, University of New Haven (fnarchet@newhaven.edu)The purpose of the presentation is to examine the current trend in American jurisprudence tocriminalize sexual contact between clients and mental health professionals. While civil sanctionsfor sexual contact with clients has long been the subject of civil case law, a current trend isemerging where some jurisdictions are defining such contact as sexual assault. Ethicalprofessional standards often are often implicated, despite the fact that the criminal trial is not aprofessional disciplinary hearing. Issues regarding the client’s consent, the nature of thetreatment, current status of the treatment relationship and the vulnerability of the client are oftenintertwined with complex legal issues. The presentation will explore the jurisdictions that havecriminalized sexual conduct within the therapeutic context and discuss the issues andimplications associated with these emerging laws. Additionally, the authors will examine theextent that these laws exist in countries outside the United States.63. The Expert Witness as DefendantBoard and Malpractice Liability for Expert WitnessesEric Drogin, Harvard Medical School (edrogin@bidmc.harvard.edu)Expert witnesses – including those in the mental health sciences – often consider themselvesimmune to board disciplinary proceedings and malpractice suits, usually due to somecombination of local custom, statutory exemption, and traditionally favorable case law. In recentyears, however, all three of these notions have shifted perceptibly in the direction of increased157