insanity

• M'Naughten case elements for insanity defense:

  • Defect of reason
  • Disease of the mind
  • Not knowing the nature or quality of the act
  • Not knowing it was wrong
• Internal causes of insanity:

  • Defect of reason: more than absentmindedness (Clarke case)
  • Disease of the mind: a legal term, not just medical, can be mental or physical and even temporary like depression or PTSD (Kemp case)
• Kemp case example: not enough blood to the brain, temporary at the time of committing the offense, considered insanity with no risk of reoffending, a momentary lapse
• Hennesy case: internal cause related to blood sugar levels
• In cases where the individual didn't know the nature or quality of the act, they were in a state where they didn't know what they were doing, like in the Kemp hammer attack case
• Windle case example: the individual knew their actions were legally wrong despite mental illness, so they couldn't plead insanity
• Johnson case example: the individual didn't know the nature or quality of the act due to suffering delusions and didn't know it was wrong, leading to a successful defense