Insanity and diminished capacity
The insanity defense and diminished capacity
- Theoretical background: An important distinction: "Not guilty by reason of insanity" versus "diminished capacity"
- Related legal issues:
- The law of evidence: admissibility of evidence
- Competence to Stand Trial (from James R. Elkins, West Virginia University)
- Cases
- The UNABOM case: the law of evidence and sentencing; admissibility of evidence; the constitutional law of double jeopardy.
- The Hinckley case: the assassination attempt of President Reagan
- Colin Ferguson - The Long Island Railroad gunman
Supreme Court cases on the insanity defense and diminished capacity
- Pate v. Robinson, 383 U.S. 375 (1966)
- Drope v. Missouri, 420 U.S. 162 (1972)
- Faretta v. California, 422 U.S. 806 (1975)]
- McKaskle v. Wiggins, 465 U.S. 168 (1984)]
More Resources
Cases
- Shannon v. United States (1994)
- Utah v. Herrera (1999)
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In the news...
- John Salvi III case (Washington Post, 1996)
- DuPont murder (Washington Post, 1997)
- Supreme Court allows state bans on insanity defense (Washington Post, 1994)
- More on the insanity defense from crimelibrary.com
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Laws
- Federal Insanity Defense Reform Act of 1984 (IDRA)
other topics
