ANSWERS: 8
  • How else would the Fundies get off when they murder abortion doctors, gays and Atheists and everybody that doesn't agree with them? The 'god told me to do it' claim is an insanity defense
  • Why not? Most people seem to think it's a legitimate argument to make on occasions.
  • No, in my opinion. In court there could be this case... "I didn't mean to blow up a bus full of orphaned kittens. I was temporarily insane!" See what I mean?
  • Um I'm thinking yes. Unless you want to cut out an entire facet of the criminal arena and the vast amount of variables within it...but be prepared for a indiscrimination war if you do.
  • You are either a danger to the social structure or you are not. I can argue that you are more dangerous if you are insane. But this is a carry over of the religious notion of "intent". Some time or other, people in a different time and place thought that if your actions were unacceptable, but your intent was good or simply void, then you were not as "guilty". You either are, or you are not guilty. Our system at least allows consideration of mitigating factors. So why is insanity it's own little category. Lock em up.
  • Yes. It is a fundamental principle of western criminal law that we only take away the liberty of people who have done some prohibited act (actus reas) with a requisite criminal state of mind (mens rea). That is, we don’t want to waste resources on a person who is not culpable for their act AND who imprisoning would not have any deterrent affect.
  • Of course. Even though it is rarely a successful defense (very hard to prove) it has its place in the system.
  • Your 8 year old son has just been raped and murdered. Within hours they catch the man that did it. Transferring him to the courthouse the next morning you hide in the bushes and blow his brains out with a shotgun as they pass by. I believe the defense would be temporary insanity. And I believe it would be a legitimate defense.

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