In 1843, Daniel tried to shot Robert peel but instead shot his secretary. The defendant missed the target and killed the prime minister’s secretary. Experts’ reports suggested that the defendant was mentally ill. The house of lords of England by then gave an order that the lords of justice on the Queen’s Bench were to give a precise definition of criminal injustice. The lords of justice eventually come up with three things that made one have defensive insanity. The defendant had to have a defect of reason and disease of the mind so that the defendant does not know the nature and quality of his act or if the action was wrong. A defect of the reason was centered on the incapability to use the powers of reason but not failing to use the powers. If the defendant is capable of reasoning but fails to use those powers, then that is not a defect of reason. If the defendant cannot use the powers of thinking, then that is a defect of reason. Mental illness is a legit psychiatric disorder while insanity is a sort of cultural concept
Andrea Yates, a resident of Houston, drowned her five kids in a water bath. She was convicted for committing murder intentionally after a pathologist provided a report that she was sane when she committed the crime. The jury in Houston later overturned the verdict when it was discovered that the pathologist gave false testimony. The court ruled that Andrea Yates was not guilty because of legal insanity.
Lorena Bobbitt and John was a young couple living in Virginia. John used to abuse Lorena sexually. On June 19 John arrived and laid Lorena.Lorena went for a cup of water after the incident. Memories of her abusive marriage came up, and she took a knife and chopped his penis. Lorena suffered from temporary insanity and could not be held responsible for her actions.
Insanity Defense
In 1994 jenny jones a national talk show was about to produce a program about same-sex crushes. They combed for people who could disclose having a crush on someone openly on television. They found Scott Amedure who had a crush on Jonathan Schmitz. The producers invited Jonathan Schmitz to the show whereby they explained that Scott had a crush on him. Jonathan Schmitz experienced temporary insanity. He was expecting his ex-girlfriend but found a man. Jonathan was found guilty on the second degree of murder.
Mental illness at the time of the crime is a prerequisite of not being guilty by reason. Psychological illness applies if one does not know what he did was wrong, if one did not know what he or she was doing and if they were compelled to do the act by an irresistible force. According to the fundamental tenets of the US justice system, one has to commit a crime to be found guilty intentionally. To conclude legal insanity, there must be an expert to prove that the defendant is mentally ill. The expert has to explain why the mental illness affects the defendant’s ability to reason. The jury gives a verdict after the expert has reported whether the defendant was mentally ill while committing the crime.
Insanity Defense
References
Comer, R. J. (2010). Abnormal psychology. Macmillan.
Steadman, H. J., McGreevy, M. A., Morrissey, J. P., Callahan, L. A., Robbins, P. C., & Cirincione, C. (1993). Before and after Hinckley: Evaluating insanity defense reform. Guilford Press.
