NCJ Number
102074
Journal
Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science Volume: 477 Dated: (January 1985) Pages: 125-136
Date Published
1985
Length
12 pages
Annotation
Limiting the issue of a defendant's mental state to proof of mens rea (criminal intent) while considering mental illness as a factor in sentencing promises a more effective remedying of insanity defense abuses than proposed modification of the American Law Institute's (ALI's) insanity test.
Abstract
The ALI provides that criminal defendants are not legally responsible for a charged offense if at the time of the offense they suffered from a mental disease or defect which produced substantial incapacity to appreciate the criminality of the conduct or to conform conduct to the requirements of the law. Those who would modify the ALI test recommend that legal insanity be redefined to include only severely abnormal conditions that 'grossly and demonstrably impair a person's perception or understanding of reality.' Volitional incapacity to conform to the law would be eliminated as an aspect of the insanity defense. Mens rea supporters regard the modified ALI approach as inadequate since the debate does not shift the issue from psychiatric debates. The mens rea test would result in the acquittal of mentally ill defendants only when they did not have the requisite intent or state of mind required to commit an illegal act. 13 footnotes.