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People who do not understand the nature of the charges or the functioning of the legal system are considered unfit for trial.
#Current instanity defense law trial
The first is a defendant's ability to understand the trial process. Outside of assisting in sentencing, there are two places for mental disease in the legal system. In fact, approximately 70% of insanity acquittals result from agreements between opposing attorneys, in which the prosecution agrees that society would be better served by placing the defendant in treatment, rather than in prison (Blum, 1992 Bogenberger et al., 1987 Cirincione, 1996 Rogers et al., 1984 Smith and Hall, 1982). However, the insanity plea is actually based on a longstanding legal tradition and is rarely successfully completed. The media may foster the notion that criminals get away with feigning mental defect, only to be released and recidivate.
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Furthermore, defendants who are found insane spend as much, or more, time in state custody than their criminally convicted counterparts. In fact, the insanity defense is used in less than 1% of criminal proceedings and is successful in approximately one-quarter of those cases. Public perceptions are that the insanity defense occurs far more commonly than records indicate. In the article below, a leading forensic psychiatrist discusses the modern view of the insanity defense and how it arose. The use of psychiatry within the criminal justice system increased during the 1960s and 1970s. Ray's opinions influenced many judges and he developed treatments for the criminally insane at his hospital in Rhode Island. Isaac Ray was the founding father of forensic psychiatry in the United States and his book Treatise on the Medical Jurisprudence of Insanity, published in 1838, helped to shape the profession. Only then can the mentally ill individual be properly helped and society protected from further crimes. Once judgement has been handed down, consideration must be given to whether prison or a hospital is the most appropriate destination for the accused (if guilty) and what treatment should be given. The forensic psychiatrist, working within the justice system, has an important role in ensuring that "insanity" on the part of the defendant is correctly identified and assessed. Mental illness can lead to involvement in crime and many individuals in prison have a mental health problem for which they may not be receiving appropriate treatment. McLearen was a doctoral candidate in the clinical psychology-law program at University of Alabama when this article was written. He is the medical director of the Taylor Hardin Secure Medical Facility and a professor at the University of Alabama. Available online at: 〈〉.Ībout the Author: Dr. "Does the Insanity Defense Have a Legitimate Role?" Psychiatric Times 39 (April 2002). Does the Insanity Defense have a Legitimate Role?