On January 20, 2016, a Newfoundland Provincial court Judge Colin Flynn ruled that Nicholas Layman, a 20-year-old man who was charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault and assault with a weapon, is not criminally responsible due to his mental disorder. On September 25, 2014, an 11-year-old boy was playing soccer on a soccer field with more than 20 other kids, with their parents watching, and Layman ran out to the field and stabbed him several times in the chest and neck with a kitchen knife. Layman then took off in a vehicle after jumping over a fence, and was arrested 90 minutes later near his mother’s house. Layman’s parents said that he had been diagnosed with schizophrenia a year before the stabbing, but the mental health professionals did not give them clear information about his treatment and thus he could not get the help he needed. …show more content…
Layman had went off his medication a few weeks before the attack and he was experiencing worsening symptoms of schizophrenia and paranoid delusions in the days leading up to the crime, but his parents could not do anything about it since he was an adult. Layman claimed that he had heard voices telling him to “Get that kid,” and the judge agreed that Layman had a disease of mind and was incapable of comprehending the results of his actions or understanding the wrongness of his actions. The fact that Layman escaped from the scene may suggest that he knew what he was doing, but the fact that he did not even try to conceal his bloody clothes showed that he was “deprived of rational decision-making.” The boy who was attacked by Layman has survived and his parents said that he is “playing soccer again and doing well in school” and also that they hope Layman gets the help he needs before getting released from his detention at Waterford
On June 7th 2008, Sarah May Ward was arrested for the murder of Eli Westlake after she ran him over in a motor vehicle in St. Leonards. Prior to the incident the offender had been driving the wrong way down Christine Lane which was a one way street. Whilst this was occurring she was intoxicated, under the influence of marijuana, valium, and ecstasy and was unlicensed to drive. The victim and his brother who were also intoxicated, where walking down the lane and where nearly hit by the offender. This prompted the victim to throw cheese balls at the car and make a few sarcastic remarks regarding her driving ability. After a brief confrontation between the two parties the victim and his brother turned away and proceeded to walk down Lithgow Street. The offender followed the victim into the street and drove into him while he was crossing a driveway.
At the time of the murder of which David Milgaard was accused of committing he was just 16 years old. He was a hippie, constantly in trouble. Even before he was a teenager he was getting into trouble. His parents and teachers considered him impulsive; he resisted authority (Regina Leader Post, 1992, as cited in Anderson & Anderson 1998). He was removed from kindergarten because he was considered to be a negative influence on the other children. When he was thirteen he spent time in a psychiatric centre (Anderson & Anderson, 1998)
The life of Perry Smith was saturated with abuse, turmoil, and a lack of compassion. His father often took advantage of their mother and subjected her to violent outbursts of yelling and physical as well as verbal assault. Seeing this behavior every day, Smith recognized it as a normal way of life and developed a hardened attitude towards violence. These experiences consumed him in a deeply troubled psychological state of mind affecting his social behavior, essentially making him a recluse to the outside world. He had a hard time developing close relationships with other people, causing him to lack common empathy and making it easier for him to blindly rampage in a murderous spree. Seeing so much violence as a child, he lost a value for human life. This simple fact is a direct outcome of his upbringing which ultimately led to his decision to slaughter the Clutter family on that fateful night in Kansas. As an opposite viewpoint, nature would correspond to a psychological disorder or mental illness. In some cases, nature can be the driving force behind a person’s lack of control over their actions. However, these factors are not often present in people who are convicted of murder. It is more reasonable that the experiences a person undergoes throughout their lifetime shapes their personality and behavior while
The notion of the mentally ill being more likely to commit crime is a topic that is highly controversial and sparks much debate. However, I do believe that it is evident that mental illness can cause irrational and sometimes dangerous behavior, which not only do I find threatening, but more so sad. In the case of Luke Batty’s murder by his biological father Greg Anderson, not only do I feel extreme sorrow towards the victim, but I also empathise with the perpetrator, due to the fact that mental illness is clearly mishandled and overlooked in our justice system.
Furman, a black, killed a householder while seeking to enter the home at night. Furman shot the deceased through a closed door. He was 26 years old and had finished the sixth grade in school. Pending trial, he was committed to the Georgia Central State Hospital for a psychiatric examination on his plea of insanity tendered by court appointed counsel. The superintendent reported that a unanimous staff diagnostic conference had concluded "that this patient should retain his present diagnosis of Mental Deficiency, Mild to Moderate, with Psychotic Episodes associated with Convulsive Disorder." The physicians agreed that "at present the patient is not psychotic, but he is not capable of cooperating with his counsel in the preparation of his defense"; and the staff believed "that he is in need of further psychiatric hospitalization and treatment."
The article “Family Says Man Shot by Officers was Mentally Ill” discusses an incident where Kody Conley, an African-American male experiencing schizophrenia, was shot by two police officers in Omaha, Nebraska. The incident took place after Conly fired a stolen gun near Creighton University campus. After the incident took place near the campus, Conley was taken to CHI-Creighton (Creighton University Medical Center), and is said to be alive. Although he is alive, his family expresses that he is in serious condition and is in a medically induced coma. The author, Miranda Christian, reports the two police officers who shot Conley are on administrative leave, and the Omaha Police Department are currently investigating the incident.
The defendant in this case is Mr. Wertz, a 26-year-old Caucasian male. While visiting his relatives, Mr. Wertz woke up in the middle of the night and drove to a nearby ranch with his rifle. He opened fire at the ranch, and eleven shots were fired by the time the police came. The rancher’s wife was injured with a bullet wound to the leg. Mr. Wertz is charged with willfully discharging a firearm at an inhabited home in California. He pleads not guilty by reason of insanity.
The life story of Ed Gein depicts his numerous brutal acts as illustrations of his insanity and madness. His deranged childhood, especially his relation to his domineering mother led to his psychosis and ultimately to the horrible killings we still fears today. He is the killer whose fiendish fantasies inspired many movies such as, PSYCHO, Silence of the Lambs, and Texas Chainsaw Massacre all of which focused on gruesome and bizarre acts beyond all imagining. Ed Gein was evidently guilty as all the evidence obviously pointed to him. Yet I believe the psychiatrists were without a doubt in my mind, accurate in declaring Ed Gein insane at the time he committed the perverse and evil acts.
Facts: Ahmad Edwards who had been diagnosed with schizophrenia tried to steal shoes at a department store in Indiana in July 1999. After being discovered, the man took his gun and fired at a security officer. Besides, Edwards accidentally injured a bystander. An FBI agent apprehended Edwards. Before Edwards was arrested, the agent shot him in his thigh, because the man had refused to drop the gun. The man was accused in attempted murder, theft, and criminal recklessness. Afterwards, his mental state became the subject of 3 competency hearings and 2 requests of self-representation. After his competency had been questioned during the first three hearings, Edwards appealed to the appellate court in the State of Indiana as he believed that his
During Dahmer’s psychiatric evaluation, Dr. Wahlstrom concluded, “Jeffrey was suffering from a mental illness never cured for” (FBI 1992). This leads me to perceive that Dahmer must have been displaying psychotic traits that went unnoticed and undocumented during his early lifetime. I can only speculate that this uncured mental illness lead Dahmer to develop and refine his inability to empathize with society; which in turn, lead him to engage in cruelty without mentally comprehending the victim’s suffering. Although the causes for psychopathy are unclear, some suggest that psychogenic aspects can outline abnormalities which may be present in psychopaths (Schmalleger 2014). When looking at Dahmer’s distant relationship with his parents early on in his childhood, I became conscious of the fact the lack of affection from his parents which may have lead him to develop twisted views on how one should display affection to others, thus prompting him to show psychotic behavior later on in life (The profile of Jeffrey Dahmer 1996). Even though the letter of the law fails to describe Dahmer and even if he was not fit to stand trial, I believe the court would have declared him fit for trial due to the brutality of the
Working in mental health is a challenge particularly when working with clients who may pose a threat to themselves or others. Given the unpredictable nature of the population it is very likely that in the course of professional practice providers of behavioral health services will encounter clients who threaten the safety of others. Ever since the unprecedented Tarasoff vs Regents of the University of California (1974) case which involved the stabbing death of college student Tatiana Tarasoff by infatuated acquaintance Prosenjit Poddar (Gehlert & Browne, 2012). Poddar disclosed to his psychiatrist Dr. Lawrence Moore of his plans to kill Tarasoff because she did not return his affecti...
Much of my skepticism over the insanity defense is how this act of crime has been shifted from a medical condition to coming under legal governance. The word "insane" is now a legal term. A nuerological illness described by doctors and psychiatrists to a jury may explain a person's reason and behavior. It however seldom excuses it. The most widely known rule in...
Milton Dusky was charged with assisting to kidnapping and the rape of an underage female. Experts declared that Dusky was suffering from schizophrenia but was competent to stand trial; he received a sentence of 45 years (Felthous, 2011). This case provides issues and matters that forensic psychologists should study and be able to determine. The case of Dusky vs U.S provided precedent to help forensic psychologists be able to study mental disorders and illnesses that can affect legal and court procedures.
Today’s headlines are often filled with the tragedy of a life or lives taken by gun violence. The American people have cried out to their leaders that enough is enough and something must be done to prevent such tragedies from continuing. The Governments solution is to call for health care reform pertaining to patients who suffer from mental health issues like schizophrenia or psychosis. However, the passing of HIPA has caused confusion among the states as well as the actual definition of mental health. Also many criminologists, psychologists, and forensic psychologists state that no psychologist or therapist can predict which patients will harm others and who will not. Instead of focusing on a path that will not help curb gun violence
A perfect example of this happened in my hometown. One day, the police station got a hysterical call from a gas station clerk who said a man had run to the gas station, pumped gas on himself, then lit himself on fire. He attempted to pour more gas on himself, but the clerk shut off the pumps before he could. Irate, he ran into the store and chased away the clerk. He then grabbed scissors and cut a foot long gash down his abdomen. When that still didn’t end his life, he grabbed an ice scraper and attempted to cut his own throat. Police officers arrived shortly after, and he was sent to the hospital with life threatening injuries. To add to the peculiarity of this case, the man’s family said he left out of nowhere and had no history of mental illness or substance