Commencement ETC PC

05/25/2026

Memorial Day is often associated with barbecues, long weekends, and the unofficial start of summer.

But for many families, it’s also a day connected to grief, trauma, and remembrance.

As a forensic psychologist, one thing I’ve learned is that psychological wounds are not always visible—and loss can continue shaping people long after public attention fades.

Today is a reminder to honor not only sacrifice, but the lasting human impact behind it.

05/23/2026

Two Texas state troopers were awarded nearly $1.7 million after a jury found they experienced racial discrimination and retaliation within the Texas Department of Public Safety.

The lawsuit alleged the troopers were repeatedly denied opportunities, treated differently than white colleagues, and subjected to a racially hostile work environment.

From a forensic psychology perspective, workplace discrimination affects more than career advancement—it affects identity, stress regulation, and psychological safety.

Research consistently shows that chronic exposure to unequal treatment and biased evaluation can lead to:

hypervigilance
burnout
anxiety and depression
reduced trust in institutions

And when those experiences occur inside law enforcement agencies, the impact can extend beyond individual employees to organizational culture itself.

What makes cases like this especially significant is that they challenge the assumption that justice systems are automatically equitable simply because they enforce laws.

Institutions can simultaneously promote public safety while still struggling with internal patterns of bias and exclusion.

The larger question is:

How can systems fairly police communities if they are still failing to fairly treat people within their own ranks?

The nearly $1.7 million verdict was centered on claims of unequal treatment, retaliation, and a racially hostile work environment inside Texas DPS.

05/23/2026

Not every Monday needs to be:

hyper-productive
optimized
life-changing
or a “grind.”

Sometimes success is:
replying to the email, drinking water, and not emotionally arguing with the alarm clock.

Behavioral goals matter too. ☕️

05/22/2026

A former Fulton County Jail detainee says he lost both legs and most of his fingers after staff allegedly ignored repeated requests for medical treatment.

According to his attorneys, Rashaad Muhammad developed sepsis after allegedly going days without needed antibiotics and medical care while in custody. The case is now under investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

From a forensic psychology perspective, this case highlights one of the most dangerous dynamics in institutional settings:

When suffering becomes normalized, people stop responding to it with urgency.

In overcrowded, high-stress correctional environments, repeated exposure to illness, crisis, and distress can lead to desensitization—where serious medical warning signs begin to blend into the background.

That doesn’t excuse neglect. But it helps explain how catastrophic harm can occur inside systems where accountability is diffuse and responsibility is constantly shifted.

And because jails operate largely outside public view, intervention often comes only after irreversible damage has already occurred.

The larger question is:

How many warning signs does a system have to ignore before neglect stops looking accidental and starts looking systemic?

A former Fulton County Jail inmate claims he lost most of his fingers and both legs to sepsis after staffers refused to give him medicine.

05/21/2026

A New York woman was convicted after throwing an explosive device into her boyfriend’s bedroom while he slept — causing injuries so severe that he lost his hand and part of his arm.

Prosecutors said the attack happened after an argument and that she had allegedly threatened him with dynamite before. She now faces up to 25 years in prison.

From a forensic psychology perspective, this case highlights something important about domestic violence:

Escalation is often preceded by warning behaviors.

Threats, intimidation, coercion, and repeated violent statements are not always “just words.” In many cases, they are part of a progression where violence becomes increasingly normalized within the relationship.

What also stands out is the extreme level of emotional dysregulation involved. Violent acts driven by rage, humiliation, or perceived rejection can rapidly escalate when someone lacks impulse control and sees retaliation as justified.

But cases like this also reveal a broader issue:

People often recognize domestic violence only after visible physical harm occurs—even though the psychological warning signs may have been present long before.

The deeper question is:

How many dangerous situations are minimized because the violence hasn’t become “serious enough” yet?

Keyonna Wadell was convicted of assault in a Long Island courtroom.

05/20/2026

Indiana will pay $1.2 million to incarcerated men at Miami Correctional Facility after allegations of abusive prison conditions.

The lawsuit described claims of excessive force, prolonged restraint, denial of basic necessities, and the use of chemical agents in ways attorneys argued were inhumane. The settlement comes amid broader scrutiny of prison conditions and oversight within correctional systems.

From a forensic psychology perspective, environments defined by chronic control, fear, and humiliation can fundamentally alter behavior—for both incarcerated individuals and staff.

When systems normalize:

excessive force
degradation
or prolonged psychological stress

the risk is that harmful behavior stops feeling exceptional and starts feeling routine.

That’s one reason abusive conditions in correctional settings often persist for long periods before outside intervention occurs: institutional culture can gradually redefine what is considered “normal.”

And because prisons operate largely out of public view, accountability frequently arrives only after litigation, media exposure, or severe harm.

The deeper question is:

If conditions are serious enough to produce multimillion-dollar settlements, what mechanisms failed long before the lawsuit was filed?

The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana made the settlements with the the Indiana Department of Correction on behalf of 31 inmates.

05/20/2026

As a forensic psychologist, I analyze human behavior daily.

Today’s conclusion:
people become dramatically more polite when they’re on a bike instead of in traffic. 🚲

Happy Bike to Work Day.

05/19/2026

Mental health providers in Ohio say they finally got relief from insurance “clawbacks” — but many are still worried about the future of care payments.

The issue involved insurers demanding repayment for previously approved mental health claims, sometimes months or years later, creating financial instability for therapists and treatment providers. Now, some protections are being put in place, but providers say uncertainty around reimbursement still threatens access to care.

From a forensic psychology perspective, financial instability in mental health systems has real psychological consequences beyond the providers themselves.

When clinicians are worried about:

delayed payments
repayment demands
or administrative unpredictability

it increases burnout, reduces provider retention, and can limit the number of high-need patients clinicians are willing or able to treat.

And those impacts are rarely distributed equally.

Communities already facing barriers to mental health access—especially low-income, rural, or marginalized populations—are often affected first when providers leave insurance networks or reduce services.

The larger issue is this:

If mental health care is treated as financially unstable or administratively risky, how sustainable is the system expected to be for the people who rely on it most?

Mental health caregivers are breathing a bit easier after a threat of collecting big money from them has been dropped. Now, CareSource says it will not ask for 15% of claims paid to some caregivers.

05/18/2026

A woman’s private therapy sessions on the Talkspace app were reportedly exposed during a court case—raising major concerns about digital mental health privacy.

According to the reporting, therapy messages that the patient believed were confidential were later accessed and used in legal proceedings. The case is drawing attention to how mental health platforms store, share, and protect sensitive user data.

From a forensic psychology perspective, confidentiality is foundational to effective therapy. People are far more likely to disclose trauma, suicidal thoughts, abuse, or harmful behaviors when they believe the space is protected.

But digital therapy creates a complicated intersection between:

mental health care
corporate data practices
and legal discoverability

And many users may not fully understand that “private” app-based conversations can sometimes become accessible through subpoenas, platform policies, or court proceedings.

The bigger issue is trust.

If people begin to fear that deeply personal disclosures could later be exposed, some may avoid seeking help altogether—or withhold critical information during treatment.

The question is:

As therapy increasingly moves onto digital platforms, are privacy protections evolving fast enough to protect the people using them?

Talkspace has amassed “one of the largest mental health data banks in the world,” according to reports to investors, containing 140 million message exchanges.

05/17/2026

A former Georgia prison warden was indicted for allegedly helping coordinate a gang-related contraband scheme inside the prison system.

According to investigators, the case involved accusations of smuggling cell phones and facilitating gang activity from within the institution itself.

From a forensic psychology perspective, cases like this are important because they challenge a common assumption: that corruption in correctional systems is always external.

In reality, power, access, and institutional culture can create environments where boundaries erode over time. Once misconduct becomes normalized—or financially incentivized—it can spread through networks of loyalty, silence, and mutual protection.

And when the people responsible for maintaining order are accused of participating in organized criminal activity, it blurs the line between “the system” and the behavior it claims to control.

The deeper question is:

How do institutions maintain accountability when the alleged misconduct is coming from inside the leadership structure itself?

Former Smith State Prison Warden Brian Adams has been indicted in connection with an alleged contraband smuggling operation tied to a prison gang.