Forensic Issues and Juvenile Justice

Court Clinic: Intervention and Treatment for Court-Involved Youth

Current Studies

• Project EPICC
  This research study aims to assess 400 first-time court-involved, non-incarcerated juvenile offenders and their caregivers over two years to examine juvenile trajectories of substance use, HIV/STD risk behaviors, psychiatric symptoms and recidivism. This National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) project is awarded to the University of California, San Francisco in partnership with the Bradley Hasbro Children's Research Center and the Rhode Island Family Court.
  Principal Investigator: Marina Tolou-Shams, PhD
  Site Investigator: Kathleen Kemp, PhD

• Date SMART

  Funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, DATE SMART is a dating violence prevention program for adolescent girls involved with the Rhode Island Family Court. Through Date SMART, adolescent girls receive group counseling focusing on self-esteem, healthy relationships with others, and general health and wellbeing. This National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) project is awarded to Northeastern University in partnership with the Bradley Hasbro Children's Research Center and the Rhode Island Family Court. 

  Principal Investigator: Christie J. Rizzo, PhD
  Site Investigator: Kathleen Kemp, PhD

• Court Clinic Coding Project (unfunded)
  This project is a retrospective study examining demographic, psychosocial and psychiatric factors related to recidivism and other risk behaviors (e.g., substance use, sexual risk, self-injury) among juveniles referred for court-ordered mental health evaluations.
  Principal Investigator: Kathleen Kemp, PhD

Adolescent Criminality Current Studies

The Assessment of Malingering in Homicide Offenders Using the Rey 15-item Memory Test, Mini-mental State Exam, Schedule for Nonadaptive and Adaptive Personality, and Psychopathy Checklist

This study will assess the usefulness of common psychiatric/psychological assessment instruments in detecting malingering (faking of mental illness symptoms) in homicide offenders.

Principal Investigator: Wade Myers, PhD