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Commentary: Is Ethical Forensic Psychiatry an Oxymoron?

Dr. Dike is Medical Director, Whiting Forensic Division of Connecticut Valley Hospital, Middletown, CT, and Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT. Address correspondence to: Charles C. Dike, MD, Whiting Forensic Division, P.O. Box 70, O'Brien Drive, Middletown, CT 06457. E-mail: charles.dike{at}yale.edu

The role of psychiatry in the legal arena is grossly misunderstood and even controversial. Some respected psychiatrists and members of the public have argued that the current state of the science of psychiatry is such that it has little to offer the legal system, and consequently, psychiatrists should be banned from the courts. Alan Stone's critique of forensic psychiatry 25 years ago is probably the most pointed. In this article, a summary of four different responses to Alan Stone's critique will be presented and analyzed.