The juvenile adjudicative competence interview (JACI): Current usage in juvenile competence to stand trial evaluations

Mental health experts are often asked to assist the courts in making relevant legal decisions, such as a defendant's competence to stand trial. Although a multitude of forensic assessment instruments have been developed for adults, the Juvenile Adjudicative Competence Interview (JACI) is the only measure developed specifically for the juvenile population. However, there is no prior research on the effectiveness of this tool. The purpose of this study was to explore the use of the JACI and to assess its usefulness in aiding examiners' opinions of competency. Data was drawn from 110 forensic evaluations, 55 in which the JACI was utilized and 55 without. A coding scheme was used to assign passing/failing scores for all items on the JACI. Findings indicate that the JACI is a useful aid, as responses strongly influenced practitioner's ultimate opinions. Section 1, assessing knowledge of the juvenile court and its consequences, was most influential of the four sections. Of the 12 content areas, knowledge about the prosecutor made the most contribution, with both understanding and appreciation items also being strong predictors. A diagnosis of Mental Retardation was also shown to be a strong contributor to incompetence. It was found that while general psychological testing was used with equal frequency across groups, other forensic testing instruments were used significantly more in evaluations without the JACI. Overall, the results of this study show the JACI to be a strong predictor of final competence recommendations and it appears that this instrument is likely to be a valuable tool in juvenile competency examinations.