Insanity Defense (and GBMI verdicts)

Outbursts of violence cast doubt on the psychiatric competence to assess insanity and to balance the need to protect society with the need to offer a competent response to the mentally ill, who committed criminal offences. In the eye of the law, an individual is guilty of a crime if two conditions are met: the defendant engaged in a forbidden conduct i.e. actus reus; the defendant committed the act with criminal intent i.e. mens rea. An exception to criminal responsibility and culpability includes a class of persons who have suffer from a severe illness or disability that impairs their cognition (e.g. the ability to perceive reality and to make sound judgments about it) and volition (e.g. the ability to control one’s own behavior). The aim of this work is to explore the concepts on insanity defence and of guilty but mentally ill (GBMI). Scientific evidence on insanity defence and GBMI evaluations, along with sound guidelines and accurate assessing methods and instruments, will provide new insights on how to assist judges and juries in court.