In the American judicial system, one very controversial defense strategy is the insanity defense. This tactic is used when an individual who commits a crime is thought to suffer with a mental/emotional disorder, therefore lacking the capacity to understand why they committed the criminal act. .
Often, when the insanity defense is implemented, the trial often becomes a subject of interest to the public. The more the case is televised or mentioned on the internet, the more society is apt to become intrigued with the defendant, the victim (s) and the courtroom proceedings. This can lead the public to view the insanity defense as a loophole for used by the defendant's attorneys and doctors to eek out an acquittal for their client. But in actuality, the insanity defense wasn't implemented as a scapegoat mechanism for the truly guilty to utilize in order to walk free; it's a way for the legal system to settle a case as fairly and accurately as possible. .
The insanity defense asserts that a criminal defendant should not be found guilty due to the his/her level of mental illness or insanity. The theory behind the defense is that a person who is mentally incompetent lacks the understand that the criminal act they've performed is wrong, harmful and illegal. And it's true; a man or woman who is severely mentally disabled, often cannot control, exhibit common reasoning or understand their their actions. .
Recorded evidence of insanity - for lack of a more appropriate word - can be traced back to ancient Rome. During that time, little was known about mental illness and those affected by it were criticized, feared, looked down upon and often wrongfully punished. It was widely thought that those with mental/emotional disorders were possessed by demons or the devil himself. .
During the the years of the Roman Empire rule, physicians deemed those who were mentally ill as "non-compos mentis" (without mastery of mind), and because of this, those who were mentally/emotionally incompetent were often not held responsible for their criminal actions.
