
Jennifer Piel, MD, JD
Personal Statement
I am a Clinical and Forensic Psychiatrist and Director of the UW Center for Mental Health, Policy, and the Law. I am an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry. I also work at the VA Puget Sound. In addition to my medical training, I earned my law degree from the University of Washington. I am Board Certified in both general psychiatry and forensic psychiatry. I am a Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and a member of the Ethics, Research, and Resident Education Committees of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law (AAPL). I have twice earned the prestigious Young Investigator Award from AAPL. 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
Centers/Programs
Training Programs
Director, Psychiatry and the Law (PBSCI-525)
Director, VA Mental Health and Justice Rotation
Coordinator, Psychiatry Resident Forensic Didactic Series
Other Affiliations
VA Puget Sound Health Care System, Seattle Division
Scholarly Expertise
- Community mental health
- Criminal justice / juvenile justice
- Ethics
- Forensic psychiatry/psychology
- Health services and health policy
- Outpatient psychiatry/psychology
- Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
- Psychological distress
- Suicide
- Telepsychiatry/psychology
- Veterans
- Forensic psychiatry
- Legislative advocay
- Mental health education
- Mental health laws
- Criminal responsibility
- Criminal and civil mental capacities
- Forensic ethics
- Malpractice
- Correctional psychiatry
- Emotional distress
Clinical Expertise
- Adult psychiatry/psychology
- Criminal justice / juvenile justice
- Forensic psychiatry/psychology
- General psychiatric illness and conditions
- Outpatient psychiatry/psychology
- Psychiatric disability
- Suicidality and self destructive behaviors
- Trauma and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
- Veterans
- Forensic settings
- Assessment of violence risk
- Involuntary treatment laws and practice
- Malingered mental illness
- Medico-legal consultation
- Collaborative Care / Integrated Care
- Evaluation
- Medication management/psychopharmacology
- Multiple modalities
- Safety Assessments
- Suicide prevention
- Telepsychiatry
- Treatment in forensic settings
Recent Publications
(2020 Aug 29)
Community Ment Health J
Bryson WC, Piel J, Thielke S
(2020 Jul)
J Forensic Sci 65(4): 1379-1381
Piel J
(2020 Jul)
J Forensic Sci 65(4): 1382-1383
Reisner AD, Piel JL
(2020 Mar)
J Am Acad Psychiatry Law 48(1): 98-104
Piel JL
(2020 Apr)
Acad Psychiatry 44(2): 149-154
Michaelsen K, Piel J, Kopelovich S, Reynolds S, Cowley D
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