The insanity defense is an affirmative defense because the defendant is not guilty since they committed the crime while mentally unfit. Markedly, the law requires that persons who have mental illness are not tried or held responsible for their crimes. However, this rule is only reached after medics have confirmed the defendant’s mental state. Durham v. the United States is a 1954 case featuring Durham and the state. Markedly, Durham v. the United States is the best example of an insanity defense case, and the research highlights the case’s details.
History of the Case
The case’s history dates back to 1954, when Durham was accused of housebreaking. Whereas there was enough proof that Durham was charged with housebreaking, he was first taken to hospital for mental medical examination. The results proved that Durham was mentally unfit to stand any trial, resulting in six months of hospitalization. Consequently, Durham was discharged after six months of hospitalization, and the District Court concluded that he was now fit to stand trial. Durham’s case was presented and heard before the District Court, which concluded that Durham was guilty. The District Court argued that there was no evidence to prove that Durham was mentally unfit to stand trial and face the consequences. Therefore, Durham was imprisoned for housebreaking.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
The Choice of the defense
The defense decided to appeal the case to the Circuit Courts of Appeal. Markedly, the defense appealed the case based on various grounds. First, the defense argued that the defendant was mentally at the time he committed the crime. Moreover, the defense argued that there was medical evidence regarding Durham’s mental state. The defense team also argued about Durham’s mental state based on previous occurrences. For instance, they presented the argument that Durham had already experienced mental issues in 1945 when he was discharged from the Navy. Whereas Durham had been recruited into the Navy, he was discharged since he depicted mental insanity. The other argument was that Durham’s situation was continuous, and there are high chances that he was still mentally ill at the crime time. Therefore, such pieces of evidence influenced the defense to appeal the case for better judgment.
The challenges faced by the defense attorney
The defense attorney faced various challenges in the bid to prove that Durham was mentally unfit and was not supposed to be held accountable for his mistakes. Therefore, the main challenge was proving that Durham’s mental issue was continuous. Arguably, it is wholly impossible and unrealistic to argue that Durham was mentally ill without proof regarding the persistence of this condition. Furthermore, the defense jury also faced the challenge of proving that Durham was mentally ill when he committed the crime. The insanity defense strategy could only work in an event where Durham would prove that he was mentally ill when he committed the crime.
The outcome of the case
The United States Circuit Courts of Appeal declared Durham innocent based on various classifications. Markedly, the jury claimed that there was enough evidence to prove that Durham was mentally incapacitated at the crime time (White, 2017). For instance, the jury argued that the hospital had already provided evidence regarding Durham’s mental state. Moreover, the Circuit Courts of Appeal also claimed that Durham was innocent since evidence proved that Durham’s mental condition was persistent and he had been accused of crimes before. In brief, the Circuit Courts of Appeal concluded that the available evidence was enough to overcome the presumption regarding the defendant’s mental condition.
References
White, M. D. (2017). The Insanity Defense: Multidisciplinary Views on its History, Trends, and Controversies. New York : ABC-CLIO.
