Participant Observation and Attempted Mental Health Consultation in a Public Defender Agency
MARC F. ABRAMSON M.D.1
1 Psychiatrist with the Courts and Corrections Unit, San Mateo County Mental Health Consultation Service, San Mateo County, Calif.
The author describes some problems of the psychiatrist working in a public defender agency. He deals particularly with plea bargaining; differences between therapeutic and legal approaches to offenders; the various "models" of criminal justice; and the public defender's comfort in his role. The author concludes that the mental health consultant may be more effective working with police, judge, or probation officers than with lawyers.
