Project 39A in collaboration with Eleos Justice at Monash University, has created two interdisciplinary courses: Forensic decoding for legal professionals and Forensic Mental Health and Criminal Justice. These courses are available for free at FutureLearna leading e-learning platform.
Project 39A is a criminal justice initiative based at the National Law University of Delhi. His research areas include forensic medicine, mental health, death penalty, legal aid and torture. The 39A Project addresses these issues within the criminal justice system through rigorous empirical research and legal intervention. Eleos Justice of Monash University Law School works on death penalty issues in the Asian region through research, advocacy and training.
These courses bring together renowned legal and forensic experts, including judges, lawyers, forensic scientists and mental health professionals from India, Australia and the UK. These short, interactive, self-paced courses have been created for judges, attorneys, and students of law, forensic science, forensic psychiatry, and psychology. The learning process has been made simple and engaging through a series of video lectures, articles, quizzes, and case studies.
The course ‘Forensic decoding for legal professionals‘ explores the scientific concepts underlying forensic pathology, medical examination in sexual offense cases, bite mark evidence, and forensic DNA profiling. It also analyzes the legal aspects relevant to the presentation of such evidence and its examination by the courts.
The course ‘Forensic Mental Health and Criminal Justice‘ focuses on the relevance of the mental health of the accused person within the criminal justice system and the various stages at which it intersects with criminal law. The course covers the legal and forensic aspects of mental health in three broad areas: fitness to stand trial, insanity defense, and the role of mental health in capital cases.
Both courses are inspired by Project 39A’s research on forensic science in India and its extensive criminal defense work. While it offers special information for the Indian audience, it is equally relevant to students around the world, covering many of the common issues faced in various jurisdictions.
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