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Legal theory and case law defining the insanity defence in English and Welsh law
- Author:
- MEMON Rafiq
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology (The), 17(2), June 2006, pp.230-252.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
The insanity defence has long been the focus of controversy and academic study. It impinges on a number of subjects and areas of expertise including psychiatry, law, ethics, and morality. The origins of the defence go back centuries both in statute law and case law. The crystallization of the defence occurred in the seminal M'Naghten's case (1843). From there the eponymous M'Naghten rules were exported and modified in various jurisdictions around the world. However, the focus of this short paper is on the history and meaning of the defence as it currently applies in English and Welsh law. An account of legal theory forming the foundation to the defence is provided. Historical case law pre-M'Naghten and post- M'Naghten is explained with particular emphasis on the meanings attached to the four elements making up the defence. The bulk of the material relates to the statutory insanity defence available for trials on indictment at the Crown court. However, there is also a pre-existing and ancient common law insanity defence available for cases in summary trial at the magistrates court. This latter defence is briefly reviewed towards the end of the paper.
Development and preliminary validation of the Mosley Forensic Competency Scale
- Authors:
- MOSLEY Dan, THYER Bruce A., LARRISON Christopher
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 4(1), 2001, pp.41-48.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
Reviews the Mosley Forensic Competency Scale (MFCS) which is a 21-item true-false questionnaire intended for use as an assessment tool in forensic evaluations of competency to stand trial. Also provides suggestions for further validation studies on the MFCS.
The organizational response to persons with mental illness involved with the criminal justice system
- Editors:
- HARTWELL Stephanie W., (ed.)
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
- Publication year:
- 2005
- Pagination:
- 217p.
- Place of publication:
- Amsterdam
Written primarily from an American perspective this volume explores the approaches (program development and evaluation), strategies (risk assessments and interventions), and institutions (courts, hospitals, community corrections, and prisons) responding to offenders with mental illness from arrest to incarceration. The chapters describe cases with wide ranging policy implications for structural and functional changes that institutions and organisations might consider in order to improve the conditions of mentally ill offenders. The writers acknowledge that policies regarding mentally ill offenders are played out differently by state and by county and vary according to the capacity of the community to support these individuals. The qualitative and quantitative research on organisational responses to offenders with mental illness described includes; programme evaluation; data collection; best practice in resource utilisation; dispositions and the courts; screening; and a broader articulation of outcomes given the special needs of the population.
Evaluating sex offenders under sexually violent predator laws: how might mental health professionals conceptualize the notion of volitional impairment?
- Authors:
- MERCADO Cynthia Calkins, SCHOPP Robert F., BORNSTEIN Brian H.
- Journal article citation:
- Aggression and Violent Behavior, 10(3), March 2005, pp.289-309.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
This paper examines the significance of the US Supreme Court's Hendricks and Crane decisions, with focus given to how mental health professionals may conceptualize the notion of volitional impairment. The Hendricks decision authorized postsentence civil commitment for sex offenders having a mental abnormality or personality disorder, rendering them likely to engage in future acts of sexual violence. In the Supreme Court's majority opinion, Justice Thomas implied that the Kansas Act was legitimized by limiting the class of offenders eligible for this specialized form of commitment to those who are "unable to control" their dangerousness. In Crane, the Court ruled that while the Hendricks decision does not require that a sex offender be completely unable to control behavior, it does require proof of serious difficulty in controlling conduct. In evaluating the meaning of this decision for mental health professionals, this paper notes the decline of volitional impairment standards in the insanity defense, summarizes case law regarding sexual predators and volitional impairment, and further reviews the empirical and theoretical literatures exploring the notion of volitional impairment.
Adults, mental illness and incapacity: convergence and overlap in legal regulation
- Author:
- BARTLETT Peter
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law, 25(4), December 2003, pp.341-353.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
While not entirely congruent, there will be substantial overlap between the classes of individuals governed by the proposed Mental Incapacity and Mental Health Acts, and by the court's inherent jurisdiction. This paper argues that the mental health proposals are procedurally strong but substantively weak, while the incapacity reforms are, largely, the reverse. For individuals who may be subject to either legal régime, therefore, the safeguards of one statute may be avoided by resort to the other. Lying across both reforms is the court's inherent jurisdiction. It remains to be seen whether or how the scope of this jurisdiction will be developed in the event that the legislative reforms are passed.
Cell structure
- Author:
- COOPER Cathy
- Journal article citation:
- Health Service Journal, 19.4.01, 2001, p.14.
- Publisher:
- Emap Healthcare
Following the killing of a prisoner by a cell-mate with schizophrenia, the criminal justice system in Essex has a new approach to offenders with mental health problems. Looks at its impact.
Professionalizing the role of appropriate adults
- Authors:
- THOMSON L. D. G., GALT V., DARJEE R.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology (The), 18(1), March 2007, pp.99-119.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
The role of an appropriate adult (AA) is to facilitate communication, to ensure an understanding of legal rights, and to provide support for an individual with a mental disorder at police interview. Such schemes differ significantly throughout the UK in terms of legal basis, requirements to be an AA, and client group. This study provides the first description of AA schemes in Scotland, and makes recommendations relevant to Scotland and wider jurisdictions. By 2002 all of Scotland had access to the services of appropriate adults via 16 schemes. This study identified problems with lack of record-keeping, performance indicators, standardized procedures, and management structures, and also with under-utilization and knowledge gaps in AAs and related professions. Police interviews have been ruled inadmissible because of lack of an AA, and also failure of an AA to explain legal rights. Recommendations are made: to create standardized reporting and training systems under the control of an umbrella organization; to develop the role of AAs through a mandatory professional background related to mental health and specific training in relevant legal matters; to develop a more realistic definition of mental disorder requiring the services of an AA with established procedures to assist police officers in their identification; to place the AA schemes in Scotland on a statutory basis; and to establish a framework for AAs to fulfil their role within a court setting.
Diagnosis, current symptomatology, and the ability to stand trial
- Authors:
- VILJOEN Jodi L., ZAPF Patricia A., ROESCH Ronald
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Forensic Psychology Practice, 3(4), 2003, pp.23-37.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia
Although research has consistently found that individuals with psychotic disorders are at greater risk of being found unfit or incompetent to stand trial, few studies have examined the relationship between diagnosis, current psychiatric symptoms, and legal abilities. In this study, defendants with psychotic disorders (n = 66) and defendants with non-psychotic disorders (n = 30) were administered two measures of legal abilities (Fitness Interview Test and MacArthur Competency Assessment ToolCriminal Adjudication), and a measure of current psychiatric symptoms (Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale). Legal impairment was significantly associated with psychotic disorders, and the presence of psychotic symptoms, particularly conceptual disorganization. However, 60% of psychotic defendants were not impaired on any of the sections of the FIT, and approximately 80% were judged fit by clinicians and the court. The relationship between legal impairment and hallucinations, hostility, depression, and withdrawal were generally non-significant. (Copies of this article are available from: Haworth Document Delivery Centre Haworth Press Inc., 10 Alice Street Binghamton, NY 13904-1580)
Competency v. responsibility: competing standards, interests and the administration of justice
- Author:
- GATES Paul H.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Forensic Psychology Practice, 3(1), 2003, pp.79-88.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia
In the United States the defendant who suffers from a mental disease or defect presents the criminal justice system with a special challenge. In addition to the usual balancing of the rights of the accused with the rights of the state and society, the legal system is called on to reconcile several additional problems. One of the primary problems is the confusion and interchangeable use of the terms “insanity” and “incompetence.” The article attempts to differentiate the two, with a brief overview of the development of each. The article also discusses the related issues of administration of psychotropic drugs involuntarily and the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision to prohibit the execution of the mentally ill, two examples of a growing concern for the welfare and rights of criminal offenders of diminished capacity.
Competence Restored: what forensic hospital reports should (and should not) say when returning defendants to court
- Authors:
- POTHRESS Norman G., FELD Dennis B.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Forensic Psychology Practice, 2(4), 2002, pp.51-58.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia
Reviews issues that arise when a criminal defendant, previously determined to be incompetent to proceed to adjudication, is subsequently judged competent by the treating staff and is recommended for return to court.