Stanford Forensic Psychiatry Fellowship Program
Program Description
Thank you for your interest in Stanford’s forensic psychiatry fellowship program. Our mission is to train the next generation of leaders in academic forensic psychiatry embodying the highest standards of ethics, scientific rigor, scholarship and professionalism. While adhering to all ACGME requirements for forensic psychiatry fellowships (e.g. for forensic knowledge and competencies), our program is unique in its focus on neurolaw. Fellows with such training will be ideally positioned to guide legal decision-making, ethical discussions, and policies that center around questions of neuroscience-based evidence in the courtroom.
Stanford University is uniquely positioned to train neurolaw specialists, given its outstanding depth and expertise in the fields of neuroscience research, medicine, law, and neuroethics.
Fellows participate in a wide variety of forensic cases and didactics with faculty, with an emphasis on cases involving the use of neuroscience in the courtroom, for example evaluating the strength and reliability of neuroimaging evidence in determining capacities and mental states relevant to legal questions such as mens rea, mitigation, and criminal responsibility.
Fellows rotate at the VA PM&R inpatient and outpatient units, with the goal of developing particular expertise in evaluating claims of brain damage and other biological factors in leading to offensive behaviors, guiding sentencing determinations, and assessing disability.
Correctional rotations are based in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation system, primarily at San Quentin and CHCF (California Health Care Facility, a California State prison dedicated to inmates with medical and psychiatric needs).
Our fellowship is integrated with the Stanford School of Law. Fellows can elect to participate in didactics at the School of Law, which include courses on Neuroethics by Hank Greely, Mental Health Law, and Criminal Law. In addition, fellows will integrate with law students on a wide range of cases as part of the Law Student Clinic.
Fellows have protected time throughout the year to access and participate in a wide range of research efforts in the Law School, School of Medicine, Center for Biomedical Ethics, and Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute. Stanford is fortunate to house all its schools on one unified campus, thus enabling ideal conditions for cross-fertilization and idea incubation, which drive innovation and scholarship.
Our fellowship is ACGME accredited for 2 fellows, beginning with our inaugural class starting July 1, 2022.
The annual stipend is $86,810 + many additional benefits, and can be found on the GME website.
How to Apply
We adhere to the AAPL common application process and timelines, which can be found here: https://aapl.org/fellowship
In addition to the common application, we have one additional requirement: a 1-2 page proposal for an academic conference to be held at Stanford during the fellowship year. We encourage applicants to propose a topic of interest in neurolaw, but any topic relevant to forensic psychiatry is acceptable (see Stanford-specific application checklist).
Applicants are encouraged to contact the program director, Dr. Octavio Choi, for any questions regarding the fellowship and/or application process.
Program Leadership and Faculty
Contact Information
Octavio Choi, MD, PhD
ochoi@stanford.edu
c/o Romola L. Breckenridge
Stanford University Forensic Psychiatry Fellowship
Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences
Stanford University School of Medicine
401 Quarry Road, Room 2208
Stanford, CA 94305-5723
Romola L. Breckenridge
Program Coordinator
romola@stanford.edu
Ph: (650) 736-1743