Insanity Defense.....????
Do You Know About Insanity Defense? Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity?
While reading a post, I came across a topic that I found extremely interesting to share with you. Are you aware of the laws that exist for people with severe mental health issues? This law is called the “insanity defense,” the “not guilty by reason of insanity” (NGRI) plea. The insanity defense is used when the defendant pleads “not guilty by reason of insanity.”
Let’s understand this with an example of using the insanity defense in court:
Picture someone named Tom. Tom is charged with breaking into a neighbor's home and stealing a television. When the police interrogate Tom, he claims he was a "superhero" with a secret mission to rescue kittens. He insists that he believed the neighbor's house was a "villain's hideout." Tom tells the police he had to act in order to keep the enemy from hurting those poor kittens. Now, let's say Tom has a lawyer. His lawyer could make the insanity defense affirmation as follows:
Tom's mental state at the time of the crime was that of a severely disordered mind (e.g., schizophrenia), which made him unable to understand the difference between right and wrong, or lawful and unlawful actions. The defense would also assert that Tom was not in control of his actions in the way that a mentally healthy person would be, and this makes Tom not truly responsible for the crime of theft. If the jury acknowledges this affirmation, Tom goes free, but not in a way that most people would expect or understand. "He's not guilty, but he's not guilty because he's mentally ill," would be the refrain.
In short, 'not guilty by reason of insanity' (NGRI) is a legal term and defense strategy used by individuals who have been found by board-certified psychiatrists and neurologists to be suffering from a serious mental condition or psychiatric disorder that causes them to be unable to control or understand their actions.
If the court accepts the defense's plea, the person won't be sent to jail. Instead, they're usually sent to a mental health facility until they no longer pose a danger to themselves or others.
Many think that a flash of temporary insanity or a surge of emotion is enough for an NGRI defense……No, only certain extremely serious conditions qualify for ‘Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity’ (NGRI).
Which condition may qualify for a not guilty by reason of insanity diagnosis?
Only extremely severe mental disorders are taken into consideration. Mild disorders are not. The court, based on the decisions submitted, accepts these as NGRI qualifying conditions:
- Schizophrenia with psychosis (delusions, hallucinations, and disorganized thinking)
- Bipolar disorder with a manic episode (which may bring about false ideas and heavy distortions of the senses)
- Postpartum psychosis (which may occur after childbirth and cause extreme changes in mood and perception)
- Acute delirium (a sudden, rapid, and severe change in mental state that can be the result of a serious disease, injury, or drugs)
- Moderate to severe dementia (which may cause extremely weakened memory, judgment, and reality-testing abilities)
- Seizures (particularly those from temporal-lobe epilepsy, which can change a person's level of awareness)
- Neurocognitive disorders (such as traumatic brain injury that has altered your thinking, emotions, and self-control to the point where you act dangerously)
- Severe drug or medication reactions (which can practically change a person's sanity, allowing the "normal" person to act "crazy")
- Brain tumors or abscesses (which can impair judgment and cause extreme fluctuation of a person's thought patterns)
The most probable verdict will be “not guilty by reason of insanity” if the court agrees with the defense used.
On the other hand, many serious mental health problems do not qualify for the legal definition of the insanity defense (i.e., Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity), meaning they cannot be used as an NGRI defense. Those mental health conditions are as follows:
- Depression
- Panic Attacks
- Intermittent Explosive Disorder
- Post Traumatic Stress disorder
- ‘Temporary Insanity’
- Recreational Drug-Induced Psychosis
- Borderline Personality Disorder
- Dissociative Identity Disorder
Nevertheless, they still require professional assistance. A psychiatric evaluation helps the court to have a full record of the person's mental health history.
Why Insanity Defense Exists?
A mental illness stole a person’s real choice. Courts can actually see when that happened. Recognizes that not everyone thinks clearly about right and wrong, and thoughts get messy.
Why It Exists: Help, Not Punishment
It sends people to therapy instead of just a jail cell. So the aim is to restore the real cause of the crime.
Why It Exists: Safer Communities
The "not guilty by reason of insanity" defense is only for people whose illness is so severe that they don't understand what they did and can't control it. The "Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity" (NGRI) verdict does not mean that a person walks out of the courtroom a free individual. In some jurisdictions, if a criminal defendant's plea of not guilty by reason of insanity (NGRI) prevails, the person is confined to a mental hospital until they are no longer a danger to themselves or to society.
Here, healing is a priority that can lead to a smoother return to society.
The Dark Side: Abuse Concerns
Some people worry that criminals may feign illness to avoid blame. This concern undermines trust in the system as a whole. Did the mind really break? That's the question many keep wrestling with. It's subjective, it's tricky: no simple answer.
The Dark Side: Stigma
Calling someone “insane”? It just spreads the myth that people with mental illness are dangerous, more fear, that stereotype keeps help away from those who truly need it.
Usually, the state has to prove that you're guilty, but they can't just say you did it. Insanity is only proven if the defense can prove mental illness.
The Takeaway
Even if a person commits a crime, they are still convicted. The NGRI defense says, "Wait, they were so mentally unstable that they couldn't distinguish between right and wrong, and they couldn't control their actions."
If the judge or jury finds the claim, the person is not sentenced to jail, but is usually sent to a mental health facility for treatment unless they pose a danger to themselves or others.
Even when the defense isn’t an option, a psychiatric evaluation still counts and can't be skipped.
In case you think a family member might be in such a situation and would like to know more about the insanity defense, please get in touch with a forensic psychiatrist. For more information, please visit https://gabapsychiatrist.com/insanity-defense/ or give us a call at +1(833)312-4222
About the Creator
Neha
Writer & mental health advocate. I have overcome anxiety & embraced my introverted nature. As a person, I consider my mental health as important as my physical health.
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