Why should the insanity plea be abolished?
Asked by: Margarette Upton | Last update: January 31, 2025Score: 4.2/5 (75 votes)
Abolition of the insanity defense has the advantages of affording greater protection to society, fairer treatment to mentally ill persons, and increased effectiveness in the administration of justice.
Why shouldn't the insanity defense be allowed?
Some argue that the insanity defense perpetuates the stigma surrounding mental illness. It implies that individuals with mental health issues are inherently dangerous and incapable of controlling their actions, reinforcing negative stereotypes.
Does eliminating the insanity defense violate the constitution?
In Kahler v. Kansas, the U.S. Supreme Court recently held that this restrictive approach does not violate due process and that a state is not required to adopt an insanity test which considers a defendant's moral capacity at the time of the crime.
What are the possible outcomes of a plea of insanity?
The possible outcomes of a successful insanity defense include a verdict of 'Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity' (NGRI) or 'Guilty but Mentally Ill' (GBMI). In the case of NGRI, the defendant is typically committed to a mental health facility for treatment.
Why do people plead not guilty by reason of insanity?
The insanity defense, also known as the mental disorder defense, is an affirmative defense by excuse in a criminal case, arguing that the defendant is not responsible for their actions due to a psychiatric disease at the time of the criminal act.
The Insanity Defense: It's Crazy!
What are the ethical issues with the insanity defense?
The basic moral issue in the insanity defense is whether it is just to hold responsible and punish a person who was extremely crazy at the time of offense.
Does pleading insanity reduce your sentences?
So, while pleading insane may possibly help you with an acquittal of your charges, that does not mean you will not be sentenced to long-term in-patient treatment. This is, compared to if you did not plead insanity and were convicted of a crime.
Is the insanity plea typically successful?
In the criminal justice system, defendants are rarely successful with the insanity plea. According to one study, the insanity defense is only used in about 1% of all court cases. It is only successful in about 26% of those cases. A defense of “temporary insanity” is difficult to prove.
Who has won an insanity plea?
- Michael Abram.
- Adélio Bispo de Oliveira.
- Edward Charles Allaway.
- Marcelo Costa de Andrade.
- Iván Arancibia.
- Jeffrey Arenburg.
- Alexander Astashev.
What is the benefit of pleading insanity?
insanity defense also protects the mentally ill, who may not fully understand the nature of their crime, from being forced into a prison system where they will not receive proper treatment.
What is the controversial insanity defense?
Insanity defense is the single most controversial legal doctrine relating to the mentally ill. All the formulations of the insanity defense require that the impairment claimed in mental functioning being a result of mental disease or defect. Defect is usually understood to refer to mental retardation.
Is not guilty by reason of insanity a legitimate defense or is it just a way for people to escape responsibility for criminal acts?
While "reason of insanity" is a full defense to a crime -- that is, pleading "reason of insanity" is the equivalent of pleading " not guilty " -- "diminished capacity" is merely pleading to a lesser crime . A diminished capacity defense can be used to negate the element of intent to commit a crime.
Why is insanity an affirmative defense?
AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE - It is an affirmative defense under any Federal statute that, at the time of the commission of the acts constituting the offense, the defendant, as a result of a severe mental disease or defect, was unable to appreciate the nature and quality or the wrongfulness of his acts.
What is the guilty but insane verdict?
The guilty but mentally ill (GBMI) verdict is premised on the notion that when a defendant raises a claim of insanity, the jury should be permitted to return a verdict that falls between the total inculpation of a guilty verdict and the complete exoneration of a not guilty by reason of insanity verdict.
What is the burden of proof for the insanity defense?
A defendant may constitutionally be required to prove his/her insanity by a standard as high as beyond a reasonable doubt. Id. at 799. It therefore follows that placing the burden on the defendant to prove the defense of insanity by clear and convincing evidence is constitutional.
What states have abolished the insanity defense?
Kansas is one of four states to have abolished the insanity defense, along with Idaho, Montana, and Utah. The insanity defense in its modern form contains two prongs. First, a person is not responsible for his criminal conduct if he could not “conform his conduct” to the requirements of the law due to mental illness.
What is the problem with the insanity plea?
Acquitted defendants deemed not legally responsible due to mental disease or defect are not getting off “Scot-Free.” In fact, defendants found not guilty by reason of insanity have been found to be held in confinement as long or significantly longer than those convicted of the same crime.
What is innocent by reason of insanity?
“Not guilty by reason of insanity” is a plea by a criminal defendant who admits the criminal act, but claims that they were mentally disturbed at the time of the crime and lacked the mental capacity to have intended to commit a crime. Such a plea requires that a court conduct a trial on the issue of insanity alone.
What is a real life example of insanity?
In 2001, Andrea Yates killed her five children by drowning them one by one in the bathtub at her family's Houston home. She was initially convicted of murder, but later acquitted by reason of insanity.
What are the pros and cons of the insanity defense?
- History of the insanity defense. The insanity defense in criminal cases goes back to the mid-19th century in Great Britain. ...
- Pro: It creates a middle ground. ...
- Con: The plea can be abused. ...
- Pro: It establishes guilt. ...
- Con: The jury may be pushed beyond its competence.
Why is the insanity defense so hard to prove?
The insanity defense looks to the defendant's mental state at the time the crime was committed, not at the time of the trial. The bar for this defense is very difficult to meet, as many conditions must be met to put on a successful insanity defense. The defense has the burden of proving insanity.
Can you plead insanity with bipolar?
A: People with conditions like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and schizoaffective disorder may qualify for the insanity defense in certain cases.
Can psychopaths plead insanity?
1 In this paper, we show that a diagnosis of psychopathy will generally not indicate that a defendant is eligible for an insanity defense. This is because the group of individuals subsumed under the diagnosis is so heterogeneous that many psychopaths are not incapacitated in a way relevant to responsibility.
What happens if someone is found not guilty by reason of insanity?
The person may be confined for a length of time equal to the maximum sentence that could have been imposed for their crime. However, the person may be further confined, if the person still has a diagnosed mental disease or disorder and is a substantial danger of physical harm to others.
What famous cases were found not guilty by reason of insanity?
The Hinkley-Reagan case
In 1982, John Hinkley was found not guilty by reason of insanity for the attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan. The verdict was greeted with outrage and calls for radical reform of the criminal justice system.