Neuroscience+and+the+Law



Criminal Law, at its core, is premised on notions of free will and choice and thus the appropriateness of consequences (punishment) for wrongful acts. Recent advances in Consciousness theory and Neuroscience put these assumptions into question. Did you know we have no explanation for consciousness? Or that the brain is not finished developing until 25 at the earliest, maybe even later for males (ouch)? Even recent Supreme Court rulings have been influenced by these new theories. The implications of all this for the Law, and frankly every discipline, are hard to underestimate. Michael Davis is an attorney and Program Director for Administration of Justice.

Facilitator:

Dr. Michael Davis, Program Director for Administration of Justice, Prescott Valley