Expert Evidence in Psychology and Psychiatry

From Criminal Law Notebook
This page was last substantively updated or reviewed June 2021. (Rev. # 95211)

General Principles

In one or more occasions, experts have been qualified to give opinion in several fields related to psychology and psychiatry:

  • effect of battered wife syndrome [1]
  • memory process in delayed recall[2]
  • memory loss[3]
  • inconsistencies and recantations of sexual abuse victims[4]
  • human conduct and the psychological and physical factors which may lead to certain behaviours that go beyond ordinary experience of the trier-of-fact.[5]
  • the general behavioural and psychological characteristics of child victims of sexual abuse[6]
  • "risk assessments and the measure of psychopathology and personality functioning and treatment for youth and adults."[7]
  • forensic psychology including automatism [8]
  • "clinical psychology and the administration and interpretation of psychological tests and risk assessment tools relative to criminal offenders"[9]
  • evidence as to the concept of ‘honour killings’ and its reality in Afghanistan and elsewhere in the world[10]
  1. ↑ R v Bernardo, 2000 CanLII 5678 (ON CA), 144 CCC (3d) 260, per curiam
    R v DSF, 1999 CanLII 3704 (ON CA), [1999] OJ No 688 (ONCA), per O'Connor JA - admitted for limited purpose of evaluating the complainant’s explanation as to why, following some of the alleged incidents of abuse, she did not immediately leave the relationship and accurately report the abuse
    cf. R v Nelson, [2001] OJ No 2354(*no CanLII links) - qualified but not permitted to speak on issues of trends of victims to lie about abuse
  2. ↑ R v O'Dell, 2001 CanLII 8624 (ON CA), 152 OAC 189, per Simmons JA
    R v Tayebi, 2000 BCSC 819 (CanLII), per Hood J
  3. ↑ R v Wald, 1989 ABCA 49 (CanLII), 47 CCC (3d) 315, per Hetherington JA
  4. ↑ R v Talbot, 2002 CanLII 23584 (ON CA), 161 CCC (3d) 256, per Laskin JA
  5. ↑ Whitfield v Whitfield, 2016 ONCA 581 (CanLII), 401 DLR (4th) 128, per Roberts JA, at para 48
  6. ↑ see R v Olscamp, 1994 CanLII 7553 (ON SC), 95 CCC (3d) 466, per Charron J
    R v KA, 1999 CanLII 3793 (ON CA), 137 CCC (3d) 225, per Charron JA
    R v DED, 1994 CanLII 9263 (NS SC)], 399 APR 162, per Kelly J
    see also R v GC, 1997 CanLII 12448 (ON SC), 8 CR (5th) 21, per Hill J - rejected evidence
  7. ↑ R v Skeete, 2013 NSPC 3 (CanLII), 325 NSR (2d) 322, per Derrick J, at para 5 - qualifying a clinical psychologist
  8. ↑ R v Cameron, 2013 ONSC 1203 (CanLII), per Parfett J
  9. ↑ R v RFL, 2011 ONSC 1900 (CanLII), per Quigley J, at para 171
  10. ↑ R v Sadiqi, 2009 CanLII 37350 (ON SC), 68 CR (6th) 346, per Rutherford J

PTSD

"Battered Wife" Syndrome

Psychological evidence of battered wife syndrome can be admitted for several purposes:[1]

  1. to assist the fact-finder in drawing inferences in areas where the expert has relevant knowledge or experience beyond that of the lay person.
  2. dispelling myths of the syndrome such as exaggeration, a masochistic desire for harm, or negative inferences from missed opportunities to leave.
  3. the limited ability of the victim to perceive dangers and form reasonable apprehension of death or bodily harm on a particular occasion;
  4. evidence pertaining to why an accused remained in the battering relationship as relevant in assessing the nature and extent of the alleged abuse;
  5. provide an explanation as to why an accused did not flee when she perceived her life to be in danger, expert testimony may also assist the jury in assessing the reasonableness of her belief that killing her batterer was the only way to save her own life.
  1. ↑ R v Lavallee, 1990 CanLII 95 (SCC), [1990] 1 SCR 852, per Wilson J, at pp. 889 to 890
    R v Knott, 2014 MBQB 72 (CanLII), 304 Man R (2d) 226, per Pearlmutter ACJ, at paras 78 to 83

See Also

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