SLS has been providing comprehensive Forensic Psychological and Neuro-Psychological Evaluations to meet the ever increasing needs of the legal field. On one hand, such evaluations can be very complex and comprehensive; yet, on the other hand, their focus may be narrowly defined to meet a specific forensic need, such as attempting to establish a defendant's mental state at the time of the alleged offense. The experienced psychologist has available a vast array of psychological tests (cognitive, personality, neuro-psychological) available for use in a forensic evaluation.

Following a consultation with the referring lawyer and a thorough review of file information (including, e.g., background information and arrest statements), a comprehensive Diagnostic Interview is conducted with the charged individual. That is followed by the development and administration of a custom made test battery with the intent of documenting psychological factors relevant to the particular case.

The test battery usually consists of a combination of standardized psychological tests as well as some of the latest, more specialized, forensic assessments. Prior to reviewing some of the more commonly used tests, the following lists some of the legal situations which often benefit from a Forensic Psychological Evaluation:

Divorce Custody Evaluations usually begin with a comprehensive Diagnostic Interview of the parents, children, and other related parties. In addition, the psychologist uses a combination of standardized personality tests (such as the MMPI) and Projectives (such as Draw-A-Family) to assist in making custody evaluations to the court. The parents are also asked to compete both standardized and open-ended questions with regard to their parenting skills, i.e., parents are asked to describe how they would handle certain behavior and/or emotional problems that may be common in raising children. Particular care is taken to accurately and clearly identify the child's concerns, needs, and best interest.

Psychological and neuro-psychological evaluations can be particularly useful in establishing the accused's current and at-the-time-of offense Mental Status and Competency. While Psychological Evaluations may primarily focus on the accused's personality and emotional status, Neuro-Psychological Evaluations primarily focus on the accused's cognitive and underlying brain processing level of functioning. One may be able to establish that limited and/or reduced mental functioning, possibly due to drug and/or alcohol abuse, significantly impaired the accused's ability to make judgements or understand the consequences of their behavior.

Forensic Neuro-Psychological Evaluations are among the most comprehensive, complex, and time-consuming assessments in psychology. It is possible that testing time may require 10-to-15 total hours; this does not include time required for scoring, interpretation, nor report writing. The Forensic Neuro-Psychological Evalution usually involves: a comprehensive Diagnostic Interview, a standardized Intelligence Test (Wechsler), several personality tests (e.g., MMPI as well as projectives), a standardized memory test, and standardized tests of visual (sensory) and motor functioning. The primary purpose of the Forensic Neuro-Psychological Evaluation is to provide the defense attorney with a comprehensive assessment of the accused's functioning level and how that may have played a role in the offense.

As part of Forensic Evaluations, whether Psychological or Neuro-Psychological, an attempt is made to establish a "psychological time line." That is to re-construct the accused's emotional state and thought process prior to, during, and after the offense.

SLS Forensic Psychological and Neuro-Psychological Evaluations are often conducted by Dr. Joseph A. Trzasko.