The Insanity Defense, an acceptable defense?   Author:  17204  Category:(Debate) Created:(5/24/2003 5:38:00 PM) This post has been Viewed (1610 times) The English law glossary defines the insanity defense as a claim that “the perpetrator was acting under the influence on an ‘internal’ derangement of the mind.” Is the Insanity Defense a reasonable defense? Should it be allowed? Did you know that the Insanity Defense doesn't exist in all states? Do you think that it should? Personally, I believe that the insanity defense should be an option because as american citizens we should all be entitled to the right to explore every mitigating circumstance. I believe that it is an important part of our legal system. Let's face it, there are insane people out there. Thus, these mentally ill people deserve equal protection under the law, like we all do. Just as a criminal is entitled to criminal justice, mentally ill people should be entitled to that same sort of justice. *However, I do have a few problems with it. First off, few states have adopted the saying “guilty but mentally ill.” A majority of them use the term, “Not guilty by reason of insanity.” My problem with this is that it basically excuses the crime. The fact is, weather the accused is mentally ill or not, they still committed the crime, ergo they are guilty. By adopting the phrase “guilty but mentally ill,” it shows that the defendant is in fact guilty, but the reason they are guilty is because they are mentally ill. *Second, once the accused is found “guilty but mentally ill,” they should be admitted to an insane asylum with no chance of parole. This way they have no chance of returning to the streets and harming others. Under our current system, once the accused feels that they are rehabilitated they can return to court and if they are deemed sane, they are eligible to be released. There you have it, thats my opinion, and yours? You can join Unsolved Mysteries and post your own mysteries or interesting stories for the world to read and respond to Click here Scroll all the way down to read replies. Show all stories by   Author:  17204 ( Click here ) Spring is coming