The insanity defense, when used correctly, allows mentally ill patients to receive a fair trial and punishment for their crimes. The truth is, despite relatively recent cases of high profile criminals such as John Hinckley, who attempted to assassinate President Ronald Reagan in 1981 and who successfully evaded imprisonment for his crime due to the insanity plea, the actual use of the insanity defense is very rare and successful acquittal of a guilty person due to insanity is even more rare. The insanity defense, although it seems like a good defense for murderers who wish to avoid prosecution, is actually only used in less than one percent of criminal cases nationally. This is because a great number of reforms have been made to the defense since mark Twain’s day, thereby making sure that true murderers such as Baldwin and Hackett could not use it to escape jail time or even capital punishment.
One test that is now used to determine legal insanity in criminal cases, which was not around during Twain’s time, is the M’Naghten test. This test sates that: "Every man is to be presumed to be sane, and ... that to establish a defense on the ground of insanity, it must be clearly proved that, at the time of the committing of the act, the party accused was laboring under such a defect of reason, from disease of mind, and not to know the nature and quality of the act he was doing; or if he did know it, that he did not know he was doing what was wrong” This test would be the first of many reforms to set the groundwork for who could legally be deemed criminally insane, thereby eliminating much of the abuse that it has faced in the past. This test was the predecessor of other tests such as the Irresistible Impulse Test and the Durham Test, both of which were developed to narrow down the use of the insanity test in criminal cases.
The insanity defense has come a long way since mark Twain’s days, due in large part to a number of reforms that have been enacted that aim to legally define what type of criminals and cases can fall under the legally insane category. These days, it would be nearly impossible for wealthy, influential murderers such as Baldwin or Hackett to even plead insanity in court, much less to be acquitted by it. Thanks to these reforms the insanity plea, now more than ever, can be used the way it was intended to be used since the days of the Roman Empire- to protect those whose mental illness makes it impossible for them to be held responsible for their actions. Even though there will always be gray spots in the insanity defense, just as there is in any legal doctrine, the truth is that for as long as there is crime and criminal trials, there will be people working to reform and refine aspects of the judicial system so that everyone who stands trial can receive proper punishment for their crimes.
Works Cited
"The "M'Naghten Rule"" Findlaw. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2012. <http://criminal.findlaw.com/criminal-procedure/the-m-naghten-rule.html>.