PsychoSexual Testing and Evaluations
The Abel Assessment
Provided by Allen N. Cowling
Many times, when beginning a new case where a false
allegation has been made, and we are assured that it is a false allegation that we are defending, one
of the tools that we recommend, for many reasons, is our client's completion of the entire battery
of psychological testing along with the Abel Assessment, or Abel Screen.
Procedures used during evaluation include review of
records and/or documents from any agency, investigative reports, reports of prior treatments,
psychiatric evaluation, psychological testing, the Abel Assessment for Sexual Interest, a polygraph and
a drug screen.
The Abel Assessment for Sexual Interest is an objective
method for evaluating deviant sexual interest. The assessment was developed by Gene G. Abel, M.D., a
veteran with over 25 years experience and research in the area of sexual aggression. This technology
uses non-evasive means to achieve objective measures of sexual interest.
There are basically two types of testing used in the
treatment and/or identification of a possible sex offender; the Abel Assessment and the Penile
Plethysmograph, or PPG. Prior to developing the Able Assessment, Dr. Abel personally used the
plethysmograph, but realizing that in many cases it could be very degrading and humiliating for the
person being tested, his desire was to develop a test that could accomplish the same results as the
plethysmograph, but without the use of nudity, pornography or embarrassment.
I highly recommend the Abel Assessment for many reasons,
but mainly because of the qualifications of Dr. Abel personally and for the fact that, as previously
stated, the plethysmograph testing can easily be degrading to many. The penile plethysmograph measures
penile circumference in millimeters caused by a partial or total erection. It is, therefore, a good,
direct measure of physiological arousal because erection rarely occurs except to sexual stimulation.
The Abel Assessment, on the other hand, uses an entirely different approach, an indirect measure. These
are two totally different methods of measuring a sexual preference, such as pedophilia. Both the Abel
Assessment and the Plethysmograph are very good tools and, in reality, each does pass all the
requirements for scientific measure. The catch is that there are a few people who molest children who
are not sexually aroused by children, such as psychopaths, alcoholics and child porn persons who are in
it for the money, but they can usually be detected with psychological testing. Although not perfect,
the accuracy of both of these devices are probably the best of any psychological tools.
Doctor Abel is a Board Certified Psychiatrist and
Medical Director. He is a distinguished psychiatrist with a national and international reputation for
diagnosing and treating problems of sexual misconduct and sexual aggression. He is considered by many
of his colleagues to be the leading psychophysiology researcher in studies of sexual behavior in the
United States.
Doctor Abel has directed six (6) National Institute of
Mental Health Research Projects dealing with sexual deviancy problems. He has published over 100
medical articles in scientific journals and his book is entitled, "Stop Child
Molestation."
Dr. Abel's assistance to me over the past 8 years
has been invaluable. When he completes an assessment of a client for me, he details the overall
evaluation results, the problems he sees and then he offers advice and recommendations of how to handle
issues that could prove problematic. As an example, one reason that I depend on the Abel Assessment is
to assist me in preparing my client for their possible testimony, should that be necessary, in either a
civil or a criminal case. The Atlanta evaluation gives me the opportunity to observe my client in a
stressful environment and for me to observe how they react and respond. I always expect my client to
have some issues with depression and some with paranoia. That would be prefectly normal and acceptable
with anyone who has been falsely accused of sexually molesting a child. The question is, what is the
extent of their depression? I have had several clients that were found to have a major depression, one
that they may not have wanted to acknowledge, but one that has begun affecting even their normal eating
and sleeping habits. That is a real problem and should not be ignored. A depression of that magnitude
usually requires medication. The medication does not "treat" the depression itself, it simply
masks the symptoms and allows the person to think and react in a normal way. There are various types of
medication and they can usually be prescribed by a family physician, however, if the medication has no
affect 30 days after beginning to take it, they should consider possibly talking with an M.D.
psychiatrist. The last thing I desire is to have a client with a major depression take a witness stand,
or submit to additional evaluations until that issue is properly addressed.
The entire Abel Assessment is completed in Atlanta,
Georgia and normally lasts two days. It usually begins at 8:30 a.m. the first day and normally
concludes at about 5:30 p.m. The second day normally ends at about 5:00 p.m. or a little
earlier.
The overall testing consists of:
- Up to 5 hours of clinical intervews with Dr. Abel
- Full battery of psychological testing.
- Sexual interest testing that identifies 15 different categories of sexual interest including non-paraphilic and paraphilic areas.
The testing is designed to identify common deviant sexual behaviors including exhibitionism, public
masturbation, fetishism, frottage, voyeurism, bestiality, obscene phone calls, necrophilia,
masochism, coprophilia, rape, sadism, transvestism, professional sexual misconduct (PSM), contact
with prostitutes, sexual affairs outside of a committed relationship, sexual involvements with
partners who were strangers to the patient, telephone sex, the use of pornography and
transsexualism.
- Sexual Addiction Screening that
compares the patient's responses with those of individuals traditionally seen as having
repetitive, compulsive or addictive sexual behaviors.
- Forensic polygraph.
- Drug Screen.
Important Client Points
of Consideration
- Many attorneys, in false allegation
cases, will tell their client that they want them to take a polygraph so they can file a motion,
asking the court to admit the results, assuming their client successfully passed the examination.
The attorney knows that the court will not allow the results, but their intention is to simply
point out to the judge that their client is innocent. Passing this battery of tests sends a much
more powerful message than a polygraph. There is no battery of tests anywhere that are more
thorough and more complete in their analysis and the examiners have testified and been qualified as
experts worldwide should the matter go to trial. Some attorneys will tell their client that these
tests are not beneficial and the examiners will not be admitted as experts to testify regarding the
results. To some extent, that is correct. The fact is, if not handled properly, no court will
accept these test results and the time would have been wasted. It is vital for any client to
understand that tests of this nature, used in defense of a false allegation, are rarely admitted
into evidence. The admission of evidence is controlled by either DAUBERT or FRYE, depending on the
state in which the client resides. In either case, normally, evidence is admitted when it has been
scientifically tested. Both the Abel Screen and the plethysmograph have been readily accepted in
the scientific community as valid tools for treating a known sex offender, but not as a basis for
determining whether anyone is or is not a pedophile and certainly not whether that person did or
did not molest a child. While the testing does show this, there simply has not been enough testing
by the scientific community, as a whole, to validate them. Therefore, for the client to honestly
benefit from these tests, it is entirely based on the manner in which they are used in the overall
defense. As an example, no expert can ever offer testimony that goes to the "ultimate
issue," meaning guilty or innocent. That is the responsibility of the triar of fact, meaning
judge or jury. An attorney may ask their expert, "Have you had an opportunity to work with the
accused?" "What was your overall involvement with the accused?" "Identify the
time you spent evaluating the accused." "Explain and identify all of the testing that you
used in your evaluation." "Explain what your testing is designed to do or to
identify." "Explain what your testing is NOT designed to do." (Address the
untimate issue). "What were the results of your evaluation?" The most that could be said
was, "The overall testing indicated that the accused is a normal heterosexual male with no
sexual interest in a child, but that does not prove whether the accused did or did not molest a
child." Any examination that shows an accused, who has been charged with child molestation, is
not a pedophile and has no sexual interest in a child is beneficial to the overall defense if it
can be used.
- The Abel Assessment had been used
successfully more with civil cases than with criminal cases, but again, it all comes down to how it
is used. The Abel Assessment has been used over 200,000 times in this country.
- In most cases, when our client has
successfully completed the entire Abel Assessment we recommend that they say nothing to anyone
regarding their testing or results. At that point, it is our desire to use any and all methods
available in an attempt to prove their innocence and, hopefully, make the prosecution's case
against them simply disappear. Not an easy task, but it can be done. Normally, our first step is to
have our client approach anyone on the prosecution side, be it the prosecutor directly or the
investigating officer, and offer to submit to any testing of their choice in order to prove that
they are innocent. There are several reasons for this strategy. One, when our client has
successfully completed the Abel Assessment, they will have passed one of the roughest possible
testing they could have been exposed to. This gives them a total confidence that they can
successfully pass any test the prosecution may ask them to complete, be it a polygraph,
plethysmograph or Abel Assessment. If the prosecution accepts the client's offer and tests are
provided, then there will be only two points of consideration; either the client passed or failed.
In the event they failed, the question then becomes, how were they able to successfully pass the
entire Abel battery of tests with absolutely no problem, yet fail the test recommended by the
prosecution. When the testing by the prosecution is fair and honorable, the client will have
absolutely no problem whatsoever in successfully completing it. On some occasions, however, we have
seen instances where a client was told they failed a polygraph when in fact, they did not. When
that happens, there could be no better backup protection than the overall Abel Assessment or
Screen. Hopefully, testing they are offered is honorable, the client will easily pass and the case
against them is dismissed.
- It is an absolute disgrace that anyone
falsely accused of molesting a child should be in a position of having to defend themselves, but
these cases are far different than any other alleged criminal act. In any criminal charge, the
accused is innocent until proven guilty and normally, one of the best defense tactics is to
"wait and see what the prosecution has before preparing a defense." In a false allegation
case, if a child says it happened, the accused is automatically guilty, at least in the eyes of
everyone involved, and it is vital for any accused to begin preparing a defense immediately. The
"wait and see" attitude in a false allegation case can be deadly, usually because the
child accuser, who is getting a great deal of attention, continues making allegations which can
easily result in one simple charge becoming 16 counts against the accused. There is an absolute art
to dealing with these cases and attempting to have the allegations disappear before indictment.
Unfortunately, many attorneys have never handled a false allegation case and have no clue as to the
proper manner in which to proceed. As badly as I hate to say it, the entire matter amounts to
nothing more than a psychological game and you win only when you convince the prosecution that,
beyond any doubt, you are not guilty. You must do that, but at the same time limit exposing your
defense in the event the matter does go to trial.
I strongly believe in the
Abel Assessment or Screening, simply because I have experienced the results and watched allegations
completely disappear after having clients complete the examination. Costly, yes, but overall, one of
the most worthwhile investments that could possibly be made in securing a proper defense, but again,
only if the results are properly used. Our goal, in any false allegation case, is simply to win and any
tool that assists us toward that end is obviously valuable. This testing is not simply for sexual
preference, but basically is an entire psychological battery, supported by polygraph and this combined
series is unmatched anywhere. I have yet to see any client who completed this testing not gain a great
deal of confidence as well, something very vital to the defense.
Our
Involvement
- We schedule the testing, prepare the
material that is sent to the institute prior to testing and meet the client in
Atlanta.
- We accompany the client to the
institute on the morning that testing begins and pay all fees. The reason for this is that any
reports are sent directly to us as opposed to the client and that is strictly for the safety of the
client. There are possible discovery issues, meaning the client may be required by law to release
the results if the results are in their possession and, if by some chance the testing results are
not favorable to the client, it most probably is best that no one is aware they even
exist.
- Prior to testing, we attempt to resolve
any stress regarding the examination, which is very thorough and difficult. In addition, we discuss
the various tests the client will take and explain how the questions should be answered. We do not
tell the client how to respond to any question, we simply make them aware of certain pit-falls to
avoid, such as attempting to analyze each question and provide the response that one believes will
"make them appear normal."
- After completion of testing, we meet
with the client and Doctor Able to obtain an oral report of the overall results. A written report
is sent to us, but it normally takes approximately 7 days.
- Very simply put, the time we spend with
a client in Atlanta during testing is invaluable for many reasons. It gives us a perfect
opportunity to learn more about them, their personality, background and the allegations being made
against them. It gives us the ability to know the client better and for them to know us. It also
provides an excellent opportunity for us to begin planning a strategy for the client's defense
and, at the very least, places us in a position of being able to deal with any testing problems
that may arise while there.
- We have had a few individuals in the
past ask if they can set up and complete the testing without our assistance. Absolutely. It is not
recommended, but each person must do what they believe is in their best interest. Our approach to
this issue is very simple. Anyone who has a desire to complete this testing on their own is, in
fact, preparing their own defense. We certainly would not want to hinder them in their effort and,
therefore, we recommend that they retain someone else to assist them in their future efforts. We
will not consider any shortcut when it comes to someone's life or freedom.
The only information not
covered here is the specific strategy that I use in handling the results once someone has successfully
completed testing. That cannot be done because each individual case differs and, I would not want
someone attempting some of the things we may do because not done properly, they could quickly put an
accused at risk.
You have accessed one of the many pages here at the
Cowling Investigations, Inc., a False Allegation Defense Website. For an explanation of how we assist
our clients who have been falsely accused, see Our Expertise, We Can Help. If you have been
falsely accused, see What to Do - What Not to Do When Falsely Accused.
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