Maia Institute

Mental Health Expert Consultants. IME. Expert Witness. Civil, Criminal, Institutional, Specialized

The Maia Institute, a group of Expert Mental Health Consultants, offers services nationwide in both English and Spanish, as well as American Sign Language (ASL), with base locations in Washington DC Metro Area and Northern VA, as well as in the San Francisco Bay Area and Northern California. The Maia Institute focuses on the provision of expert consultations on matters of mental health and law, psychodiagnostic and neuropsychological assessments, and consultation services for institutions seeking to optimize mental health, its delivery, or compliance with regulations. In addition, Maia Institute offers clinical consultation services on distinct patient populations, such as Sports Psychiatry, Treatment-Resistant Illnesses, Medication Assisted Treatment of Addiction, Alternative and Complementary Treatment of Mental Illness, and the Management of Mental Illnesses in conjunction with severe medical or neurological pathology. The Maia Institute actively seeks to contribute to the development of tools that support efficient and advanced medical practice.

08/25/2025

Morgan Geyser, who was 12 when she stabbed a classmate in 2014 in an attempt to please the fictional character Slender Man, has been granted conditional release from a Wisconsin psychiatric hospital after seven years. Diagnosed with early-onset schizophrenia, Geyser had pleaded guilty to attempted homicide but was found not criminally responsible due to mental illness.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jul/17/slender-man-case-release-psychiatric-hospital?utm_source=chatgpt.com

Morgan Geyser, who pleaded guilty to 2014 attack when she was 12 years old, granted conditional release

08/22/2025

A 14-year-old girl, Ruth Szymankiewicz, died after being left unobserved for 15 minutes at a psychiatric hospital by a support worker who was using a false identity and later fled to Ghana. Ruth, who was struggling with anorexia and had been detained far from home under the Mental Health Act, experienced what her parents described as neglectful and harmful treatment, which they likened to "torture." The hospital, already criticized in prior reports, has since closed, and the inquest into her death is ongoing.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/aug/04/ruth-szymankiewicz-died-huntercombe-hospital-agency-worker-false-id-inquest?utm_source=chatgpt.com

Ruth Szymankiewicz should have been under constant watch at Huntercombe hospital

08/20/2025

Tamika Chesser, a former contestant on Beauty and the Geek, has been charged with the murder of her partner, Mr. Story, whose head remains missing despite an extensive search. The shocking nature of the alleged crime and Chesser’s reality TV background have drawn widespread national and international media attention.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-04/port-lincoln-reacts-alleged-murder-julian-story-tamika-chesser/105490574

Port Lincoln's mayor says the grisly nature of the alleged murder of one of the town's long-time residents has been acutely felt in the community.

08/18/2025

The mother of Ravi Coutinho is suing his health insurer, Ambetter, alleging it misled customers by listing false mental health provider information, which prevented her son from receiving the care he desperately needed. After months of failed attempts to find in-network treatment and over 20 calls to the insurer, Coutinho died in May 2023—highlighting the dangers of so-called “ghost networks” exposed in a ProPublica investigation.
https://www.propublica.org/article/centene-ghost-network-lawsuit-ambetter-ravi-coutinho

The mother of Ravi Coutinho, the subject of a recent ProPublica investigation, is suing Centene for publishing “misleading” information that gave her son a false impression about the kinds of mental health care that were actually available.

08/15/2025

Ralph Leroy Menzies’s attorneys are seeking a commutation hearing, arguing his declining mental health and dementia warrant changing his death sentence to life without parole. The Utah Attorney General’s Office opposes the request, stating Menzies remains mentally competent and fully aware of his circumstances ahead of his scheduled ex*****on on September 5.
https://www.ksl.com/article/51352473/ralph-menzies-understands-that-he-will-be-executed-and-why-state-argues

Prosecutors have filed their response to death row inmate Ralph Menzies' request for his sentence to be changed to life without parole due to declining mental health.

08/13/2025

Over the past four decades, Pennsylvania has struggled to build a sustainable community-based mental health system, with major funding cuts since 2013 leading to reduced services for tens of thousands of people. Despite recent funding efforts by Gov. Josh Shapiro, mental health resources remain inadequate amid rising needs, particularly within the state’s jail populations.
https://www.spotlightpa.org/news/2025/07/pennsylvania-community-mental-health-crisis-funding-olmstead-implementation-health/

One family's story reveals the human cost of hospital closures, funding cuts, and the resulting failures in Pennsylvania's mental health care system.

08/11/2025

In the latest episode of The Psychology of a Serial Killer, forensic experts Dr. Andrew Johns and Dr. Harry Brunjes explore the troubling early life of Harold Shipman and how systemic failures allowed his crimes to go unnoticed. The podcast offers a deep dive into the psychology and patterns of medical murderers.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14950239/harold-shipman-inquiry-psychologist-disturbing-behaviours-predicted-dr-death-killing-spree-mail-podcast.html

The Mail's 'The Psychology of a Serial Killer' is a brand-new true crime podcast that delves into the minds, methods, and motivations of medical murderers.

08/08/2025

The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) found that most sexual violence in Australia goes unpunished and unacknowledged by the justice system, prompting 64 recommendations to better support victim-survivors, including trauma-informed training, consent education, and expanded access to restorative justice. It also urged for independent legal representation for victims—an initiative now being trialed in several states—with advocates highlighting the need to shift the legal focus from treating victims merely as witnesses in the state’s case.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-08/how-lily-took-her-rapist-to-court-and-won/105504372

In New South Wales, just 7 per cent of sexual assault cases reported to police resulted in a conviction. Lily's story offers an insight into how the system treats victim-survivors.

08/06/2025

A federal investigation will examine allegations of abuse and neglect at Illinois state-run residential institutions for people with disabilities, including Choate, which was the focus of a yearlong Capitol News Illinois and ProPublica investigation. The probe will scrutinize the state’s overall treatment of disabled individuals and how such institutions have responded to longstanding reports of mistreatment.
https://www.propublica.org/article/illinois-disabilities-doj-investigation-choate-abuse

A federal probe into Illinois’ treatment of disabled people will examine abuse and neglect allegations at state-run residential institutions — including Choate, the subject of a yearlong Capitol News Illinois and ProPublica investigation.

08/04/2025

The Jakarta Metropolitan Police will involve a forensic psychologist to profile Arya Daru Pangayunan, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs diplomat found dead with his head wrapped in duct tape and his body in a blanket at his rented home. As part of the ongoing investigation, police are examining his daily life and social circle, have interviewed close contacts and family members, and emphasize that the cause of death will be determined through scientific analysis rather than speculation.
https://en.tempo.co/read/2027488/police-enlist-forensic-psychologists-to-investigate-young-diplomats-death-in-jakarta

The involvement of a forensic psychologist in this investigation is to delve into the profile of diplomat Arya Daru.

08/01/2025

The Supreme Court has issued binding guidelines requiring all educational institutions with 100 or more students to appoint at least one trained mental health professional to address child and adolescent well-being. Additionally, the Court ordered a CBI investigation into the alleged su***de of a 17-year-old NEET aspirant at a coaching hostel in Visakhapatnam in July 2023.
https://lawbeat.in/news-updates/sc-issues-15-point-binding-guidelines-to-prevent-student-su***des-orders-cbi-probe-in-neet-aspirants-death-1514087

The Court ordered that all educational institutions with 100 or more students must appoint at least one qualified counsellor, psychologist, or social worker trained in child and adolescent mental...

07/30/2025

The forensic psychology team had conducted an in-depth examination to determine the cause of death of Deputy Expert Diplomat Arya Daru Pangayunan, who was found dead with his face wrapped in yellow duct tape at the Guest House Gondia in Central Jakarta on July 8. While the investigation was still ongoing and no preliminary results had been released, investigators had questioned five witnesses—including Arya’s wife, colleagues, a boarding house guard, and a neighbor.
https://voi.id/en/news/496842

The forensic psychology team has conducted a series of examinations to reveal the cause of death of the Deputy Expert Diplomat of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Kemenlu) Arya Daru Pangayunan.

Address

Washington D.C., DC

Telephone

+12025969585

Website

http://maiainstitute.org/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Maia Institute posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Practice

Send a message to Maia Institute:

Shortcuts

Want your practice to be the top-listed Clinic in Washington D.C.?