Effective Use of an Expert in Sexually Violent Predator Commitment Hearings

Abstract

This chapter looks critically at the use of experts in sexually violent predator (SVP) commitment. It begins by providing some important background information before suggesting the qualifications an SVP expert should ideally have. The chapter discusses the expert's role in proving or disproving that the accused has a mental disorder that makes him likely to engage in future predatory acts of sexual violence. The chapter also discusses what an expert should do in preparation for trial. Unlike a rape or child molestation trial, an SVP commitment hearing is a bureaucratized affair. The state must prove three things in order to have a person committed as a sexually violent predator: the person has committed a prior crime of sexual violence; he has a currently diagnosed mental disorder; and this combination makes him at risk for committing a future crime of sexual violence. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)