Man Kills 2 Year Old Step-Daughter Over Crying During The World Cup

[cheerfulgreek]

Originally Posted by Psi U MC Vito

Nope. And what if they actually are insane?

I would think that sometimes it would be hard to tell.

[Drolefille]

Originally Posted by cheerfulgreek

I would think that sometimes it would be hard to tell.

Not really.

[cheerfulgreek]

Originally Posted by Drolefille

Not really.

Why? or how?

[Drolefille]

Originally Posted by cheerfulgreek

Why? or how?

Because you don't get to just say "I was insane then, but I'm perfectly fine now." Mental illness is diagnosable and psychiatrists and other professionals are trained in diagnosis. Particularly ones who work with law enforcement. If someone claims the voices made him kill his brother, and shows no signs of psychotic or schizophrenic symptoms it's not going to fly.

And you have to convince the jury as MC said.

As for the not fit to stand trial, they usually get committed until they ARE fit to stand trial.
There are more mentally ill people in prison than "sane" people who dodge jail time with an insanity plea.

[GatorGirl27]

As far as NGRI/guilty but insane pleas go, they are very hard to prove. As much as the media portrays them as an easy way for people to get a lightened sentence, they're not. There are two points of insanity (which is a legal term, not a psychiatric/medical term). The first is the pre-existing condition, the second is that the condition prevented the person from knowing right from wrong at the time of the crime. Usually the latter is disproved by the defendant's attempts to cover the crime. Usually the people who use these defenses effectively are the ones who genuinely had no idea what they were doing at the time.

Also (and I know this varies from state to state) but in some states NGRI is a worse sentence. As far as I know, because you aren't sentenced for an amount of time, you can be held indefinitely in a mental health facility as long as the state sees fit.

[Drolefille]

Originally Posted by GatorGirl27

Also (and I know this varies from state to state) but in some states NGRI is a worse sentence. As far as I know, because you aren't sentenced for an amount of time, you can be held indefinitely in a mental health facility as long as the state sees fit.

Yes, they get to determine if you're safe to be released or not.

[cheerfulgreek]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

If you're not guility by reason of instanity, there is no "sentence" because you're not guilty. That doesn't mean you won't be involuntary committed to a mental institution.

There are two things that often get confused -- legally insane for criminal purposes and incompetent to stand trial. The law can vary from state to state on insanity.

For criminal purposes, insanity is a defense. Generally speaking, it means that the defendant, at the time of the crime, was unable to understand the difference between right and wrong, or more specifically that what he was doing was wrong, and therefore was unable to form the specific intent (mens rea) to do wrong that is necessary for criminal culpability.

As Drolefille says, you can't just say "I'm insane." Neither can a doctor. The jury has to be convinced of it.

Originally Posted by Drolefille

Because you don't get to just say "I was insane then, but I'm perfectly fine now." Mental illness is diagnosable and psychiatrists and other professionals are trained in diagnosis. Particularly ones who work with law enforcement. If someone claims the voices made him kill his brother, and shows no signs of psychotic or schizophrenic symptoms it's not going to fly.

And you have to convince the jury as MC said.

As for the not fit to stand trial, they usually get committed until they ARE fit to stand trial.
There are more mentally ill people in prison than "sane" people who dodge jail time with an insanity plea.

I remember two summers ago, where I used to work, we got into a discussion similar to what we're discussing here, and my boss told me that based on my views, I would never get picked for jury duty. And I've always wanted participate in something like that. I'm not sure how that process works. Who gets picked and who doesn't?