Insanity. What do you think of when you hear that word? I think of people who are in straight jackets locked away in high security mental institutions. I think of people who commit crimes that are unheard of and almost unspeakable. Insanity is a general term for a semi-permanent, severe mental disorder. The concept of insanity means that “a person lacks the awareness of what he or she is doing and therefore cannot form an intent to do wrong” (www.crimelibrary.com). So what happens when a person commits a crime when they lack awareness or have a severe mental disorder?
The insanity defense is one of defenses available to individuals who have committed an act which the law has declared criminal. A person may be found not criminally responsible for the act with a successful plea of insanity. Since it is very difficult to define abnormal behavior this issue is complicated. If a defendant pleas “not guilty by reason of insanity,” the court must assess his or her mental......

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Title: The Insanity Defense
Approximate Word Count: 3100
Approximate Pages: 13 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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