My research is focused mainly on the concepts and ideas of criminal responsibility and the interface between law and philosophy, forensic psychology and psychiatry. I am also interested in methodological questions and, in particular, in the use of empirical methods in legal research.

In my dissertation for the Degree of Doctor of Laws (‘Straffansvar vid atypiska sinnestillstånd’, 2020), I explored the attribution of criminal responsibility in Swedish criminal law when the defendant acted under an atypical mental state, such as psychosis. The main objective was to ascertain how the Swedish criminal justice system, which has abolished the insanity defense, conceptualizes the requirements of criminal responsibility in relation to mental disorder.

During 2024-2027, I will continue an extensive analysis of the Swedish model for criminal responsibility and sanctions in cases where the defendant has a severe mental disorder or serious functional disability. The project (‘An integrated model in practice’) engages with questions that concern, for example, the prosecution, conviction and sanctioning of offenders with intellectual or developmental disabilities. I will also explore questions related to the use of compulsory psychiatric in-patient treatment as a sanction for crime, focusing on the ‘special release inquiry’ which has been criticized for enabling long term incarceration with unclear justification. The project includes the study 'Acquitted after forensic psychiatric examination’ financed by Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, where I collaborate with psychologists and psychiatrists at the Swedish Board of Forensic Medicine (https://www.rj.se/anslag/2023/frikand-efter-rattspsykiatrisk-undersokning).

I collaborate with the Centre for Ethics, Law and Mental Health at the University of Gothenburg, as well as with researchers around the world with an interest in questions related to criminal responsibility and mental disorder. Don't hesitate to contact me for discussion or collaboration.

I teach criminal law with a focus on general principles, foundational questions and the interaction between criminal law and philosophy, psychology and psychiatry. I am the course director for the advanced course ‘Criminal responsibility and punishment, with special focus on criminal violence’ and teach on interdisciplinary specialist courses in forensic psychiatry and psychology.

Participation in public discussions regarding offenders with mental disorders or disabilities, as well as collaborations with legal and other actors involved in the criminal procedure has been important for my research. I collaborate with the Swedish Board of Forensic Medicine on matters concerning forensic psychiatric evaluation and regularly interact with policy actors and interest groups that focus on questions regarding offenders with mental disorders.