Daubert Considerations in Forensic Evaluations by Telepsychiatry

• Published in: The journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Vol. 50; no. 4; pp. 517 - 528
• Main Author: Recupero, Patricia R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.12.2022
• Subjects: COVID-19; Expert Testimony; Humans; Pandemics; Psychiatry; Reproducibility of Results; Telemedicine; United States; United States; expert witness; rules of evidence; telepsychiatry; videoconferencing; testimony
• ISSN: 1943-3662
• DOI: 10.29158/JAAPL.210161-21

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased demand for telepsychiatric services. Forensic psychiatrists can expect to receive more requests for assessments conducted via videoconferencing technology in the years to come. Under current rules of evidence in the United States, the testimony of expert witnesses is introduced as a form of scientific evidence and may be challenged by opposing counsel through hearings. In a challenge, courts may evaluate proposed expert testimony through four criteria relating to scientific reliability and validity: whether the testimony is based on methods that emerge from a testable hypothesis, whether the method has been subjected to peer review, the known or potential rate of error associated with the method, and whether the method has achieved general acceptance in the relevant scientific community. To date, courts have not addressed whether testimony based on a telepsychiatric assessment would meet standards of reliability and validity for admission into evidence, as applied in a typical hearing. This article explores the standards and other potential objections to telepsychiatry as they may apply to forensic psychiatric examinations conducted via videoconferencing technology. The discussion also provides suggestions to evaluators to increase the likelihood of such testimony surviving a challenge.