Who We Are

Personal Statement

I am triple Board Certified in General Psychiatry, Forensic Psychiatry, and Brain Injury Medicine. My professional roles include being the Director of the UW Center for Mental Health, Policy, and the Law; Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry; and a Staff Psychiatrist at the VA Puget Sound.  In addition to my medical training, I earned my law degree from the University of Washington. As a member of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law (AAPL), I serve on the Ethics, Research, and Resident Education Committees and I twice earned AAPL’s Young Investigator Award from. I am the Legal Digest Editor for the Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law. I have served as an expert witness or consultant in legal cases involving criminal and civil competencies; criminal responsibility; malpractice; personal injury; sexual and gender harassment; and fitness for duty, among others. I teach courses in forensic mental health at the University of Washington and speak locally and nationally on topics related to psychiatry and the law.

Education

JD, University of Washington 2001
MD, USC/Keck School of Medicine, 2007
General Psychiatry Residency, University of Washington, 2011
Forensic Psychiatry Fellowship, Case Western Reserve University, 2012

Department Affiliations

Other Affiliations

VA Puget Sound Health Care System, Seattle Division