The insanity defense, when used correctly, allows mentally ill patients to receive a fair trial and punishment for their crimes.

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The Crime of Insanity

        In his satirical essay “A New Crime,” Mark Twain presents his readers with shocking real-life examples of cold-blooded murderers who have been acquitted from their crimes by using the insanity plea as a defense. He condemns the murderers, usually those from backgrounds of wealth and social influence, who see this plea as a “get out jail free card”. Twain states that “Insanity certainly is on the increase in the world, and crime is dying out.” While some readers might read the stories of men like Baldwin or Hackett, who were able to abuse the insanity plea due to their family’s wealth and high social status, and call for the total elimination of the insanity plea as a murder defense, but this is the wrong idea. The key to correct use of the insanity plea is in reform, not abolishment. This is because no matter how rampant abuse of this defense it, there will always be people who, due to mental issues, truly were not in their right mind when they committed their murder; these people deserve a fair trial that takes into account every factor of their crime, just as anyone else would receive.

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        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 ...

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