American Veterans: Criminal Behavior and Mental Health

Principal Speaker:
Ziv Cohen, MD
President of the Society for Adolescent Psychiatry; Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College of Cornell University and on the medical staff of New York Presbyterian Hospital

Dr. Cohen obtained his medical degree from Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City. He completed his residency in psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical Center/New York Presbyterian Hospital, also in New York.  He completed research and clinical fellowships in forensic psychiatry at Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons.  In addition, Dr. Cohen has served as a staff psychiatrist in the military, where he gained experience with psychological trauma, PTSD, and military psychiatry.

Dr. Cohen is a Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and a member of the New York Academy of Medicine.

Dr. Cohen maintains a private practice working with patients on areas such as trauma, depression, anxiety, and ADHD, as well as work, relationships, and identity.  Dr. Cohen has worked on cases involving competency to stand trial, dangerousness, suicide, psychiatric standard of care, addiction, and state of mind at the time of an offense.  He brings his expertise in psychiatry and wide ranging clinical experience to a broad range of forensic psychiatric issues.

Panelists:
John C. Gunn, CBE, MD, FRCPsych, FMedSci
Member Parole Board, England & Wales; Emeritus Professor of Forensic Psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London

Prof Gunn’s medical training in was Birmingham and his psychiatric training was at the Maudsley in London. He became a Foundation Member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists 1971, and has been active within the Royal College since that time, serving on most of the senior committees of the College and was chairman of the Faculty of Forensic Psychiatry from 2000 – 2004. From 1978 to 2002 he was the Professor of Forensic Psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry in London and he developed the largest postgraduate teaching center in Britain for forensic psychiatry. From 1993-5 he was Deputy Chief Examiner of the Royal College. He currently serves on the CPD and on the Parliamentary Committees.

Prof Gunn has been a medical advisor to two House of Commons committees, to the Department of Health, and to the Home Office, including 9 years on the Home Secretary's Advisory Board for restricted patients. He has undertaken work for the Council of Europe Committee for the Prevention of Torture. For two years he was a member of the Royal Commission on Criminal Justice in England & Wales. (1991-3). He was awarded the Phillipe Pinel Prize in 1992 for services to international forensic psychiatry.

Prof Gunn’s research studies have included estimating the prevalence of epilepsy within British prisons, and more lately the prevalence of psychiatric disorder within British prisons. The studies refuted the supposed connection between epilepsy and violence, but shown that quite large numbers of mentally disordered people languish in British prisons. He has taken an interest in suicides in prisons, and a special interest in the problems posed by people who get labelled as suffering from 'personality disorder'. As part of his prison research work he studied the effectiveness of treatment within Grendon prison for 'personality disordered' prisoners. Prof Gunn has written a book on men with epilepsy in prison, and another on the use of therapeutic communities in prison. With Professor Pamela Taylor Professor Gunn has co-authored a textbook of forensic psychiatry and he is also one of the three editors of the international journal Criminal Behavior & Mental Health.  Other research has been with evaluating group treatments and in particular the therapeutic community at Grendon prison.

In his clinical work Prof Gunn has at various times treated offender patients, in secure settings, in open hospital settings, and in the community; he has always taken a special  interest in community forensic psychiatry, being involved with drop-in projects and setting up specialized housing for mentally disordered offenders. In the 1970's he developed a pioneer residential service for mentally disordered offenders. He also developed a service for victims who have suffered psychological trauma. Also in the 1970s he was chairman of a project team which set up medium security psychiatry services for the South East Thames Region of the NHS.

Prof Gunn has written books on violence, on men with epilepsy in prison, and another on the use of therapeutic communities in prison. With Professor Pamela Taylor he has co-authored a textbook of forensic psychiatry and he is also one of the four editors of the international journal Criminal Behavior & Mental Health.  Other research has been evaluated group treatments and in particular the therapeutic community at Grendon prison.

Pamela J. Taylor, MBBS, MRCP, FRCPsych, FMedSci
Professor of Forensic Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, UK

Pamela Taylor was an undergraduate at Guy’s & King’s College Hospital Medical Schools, London, and completed post graduate training there, at the University of Vermont, USA, and the Institute of Psychiatry (IoP), London, becoming a Royal College of Psychiatrists’ Gaskell Gold medalist. Subsequent posts included Head of Medical Services for the Special Hospitals’ Service Authority 1990-5, Professor of Special Hospital Psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry 1996-2004, and membership of the Inner London Probation Board 1992-2002.

Currently Professor of Forensic Psychiatry, Cardiff University, Visiting Professor at the IoP, King’s College London and Forensic Psychiatry Advisor to the CMO of the Welsh Assembly Government, she is also a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences.  She has been elected to various roles for the Royal College of Psychiatrists. She has published on psychosis and violence, mental state among prisoners, chairs an offender health research network in Wales and co-chairs an international research group. She edits the journal Criminal Behavior & Mental Health, and is international editor of Behavioral Sciences & the Law. With John Gunn, she edits the textbook Forensic Psychiatry: Clinical, Legal and Ethical Issues (1Ed 1993; 2Ed 2009); she also edited the books Violence in Society (1993), Couples in Care & Custody (1999) (with Tom Swan), and Personality Disorder & Serious Offending: Hospital Treatment Models (2006) (with Chris Newrith & Clive Meux).

Robert Weinstock, MD, DLFAPA
Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Forensic Psychiatry Residency Program at the University of California at Los Angeles

Robert Weinstock, MD received his MD degree from New York University School of Medicine.  He did his psychiatric residency training at McLean Hospital of Harvard University. He co-edited (with Richard Rosner) "Ethical Practice in Psychiatry and the Law", was a Section Editor of "Principles and Practice of Forensic Psychiatry" (edited by Richard Rosner), "Textbook of Adolescent Psychiatry" (edited by Richard Rosner), and "Clinical Handbook of Adolescent Addiction" (edited by Richard Rosner), and co-authored "Forensic Ethics and the Expert Witness" (with Candilis, P., Martinez, R., et al.).  He is a Past President of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, and a Past President of the American Society for Adolescent Psychiatry. He is a Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Forensic Psychiatry Residency Program at the University of California at Los Angeles.