Posted by Mitchell on March 12, 2002, at 20:05:00
In reply to Re: Andrea knew what she was doing, posted by trouble on March 12, 2002, at 1:37:19
From what I know, a lot of how insanity defenses are applied has to do with jurors rather than with judges. Some jurors would hold a person with an IQ of 60 responsible for a crime, for perhaps cultural or racial reasons. It's hard to dictate what goes on in the mind of a juror. The judge instructs them then apparently hopes peer pressure will cause all 12 to follow the instruction.
My understanding is that Brawner and Ali were improvements of McNaughton because they replaced the idea of appreciating wrongfulness with the idea of appreciating criminality. If that is not the major difference, I am back at square one. If McNaughton is the precedent in Texas (apologies to all Texans) it figures. My impression of the states government is that policies are laced with religious belief. McNaughton relies on a fundamentaly religious assumption that all humans have a innate knowledge of right and wrong. My guess would be that, under that rule, Yates should be acquitted, but a typical Texas jury will convict. I would think Brawner or Ali would also tend to result in conviction, if the state can show any evidence that Yates tried to conceal her acts or otherwise behaved in such a way that reveals an appreciation for how her community would respond to her behavior.
I think "guilty but insane" is used in some states, but not all. It is more a product of legislative initiative than of judicial interpretation,whereas standards for insanity defense rely on judicial interpretations of insantity, i.e. McNaughton. I'll have to check sometime why, if it is true, Brawner or Ali are not recognized in Texas. Mabye they were appelate decisions in a different district.
poster:Mitchell
thread:19491
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20020305/msgs/19713.html