The insanity defense is a controversial topic that randomly sparks outpour in society. John Hinckley, for example, caused the public to be openly against the insanity defense when he successfully used the plea to escape prison for attempting to assassinate President Ronald Reagan in an attempt to impress an actress. Now, the public is angry after hearing of James Holmes using the insanity plea as an excuse for the movie theatre shooting. However, the majority of the public does not know the facts about the insanity plea. Many question whether or not it is legitimate, and, if it is, how it can be reformed for the betterment of the mentally ill. 

The insanity defense and its legitimacy are very important to those who are truly mentally ill. With the insanity defense, they can get the help that incarceration would not give them. It should be the government's top priority to not only punish those who did wrong but to also help those who cannot control themselves in order for them to be safe around civilians. The insanity defense, although flawed, ensures public safety. As a minor in criminal justice, I believe that it is imperative for people to know the facts regarding our justice system, and that although it is not perfect there are ways in which we can change it.

William H. Weaver argues in his article titled The Unpopularity and Improbability of the Insanity Defense that the public has the wrong impression of the insanity plea. While people believe that the insanity plea is unfairly used quite frequently, the truth is that it is rarely used, and the media plays a role in this issue. "The media jumps at every chance to diagnose a questionable subject as insane" (Weaver, 109). It is unbelievably rare for a defendant to use the insanity plea because the defendant himself must prove his insanity and those who may get the insanity plea will be incarcerated far longer than they would without pleading (Weaver, 117). Weaver has a bachelor's in philosophy and is attending law school, so this source is biased towards the criminal justice system and the facts that follow the insanity defense. He argues for the insanity defense with his knowledge in the law.

The American Law and Legal Information Online Library provide important reasoning as to why the insanity defense is not corrupt. If a criminal were to corruptly use the insanity defense to get out of a murder, then he or she would end up serving more time in prison than he or she would without using the plea (Law.Jrank). Also, contrary to popular belief, the insanity plea is mostly used on misdemeanors. Finally, only 20 percent of the small amount of those who plead insanity are found insane by a jury (Law.Jrank). This online American law library proves how risky it is for criminals to plead not guilty by reason of insanity. Pleading insane will only make their charges worse, and the insanity plea is not often used for murder cases. The criminal would have a better chance getting off on parole than trying to get out of prison time by pleading insane. 

Multiple psychiatry experts provide feedback on the insanity defense and how one is proven insane. They include the difficulty of proving one insane because of the constant changing of the insanity plea over the years. The authors also include that once one is proven insane, he or she is not free from any incarceration. Depending on the state, that person could either have less confinement time or more confinement time if the insanity defense had not been raised (Feuerstein, "The Insanity Defense"). It is explained that the two requirements for a criminal act  --  knowing that one is committing a crime and the act being a crime itself  --  are what must be missing when someone pleads insanity (Feuerstein, "The Insanity Defense"). Commonly known as mens rea and actus reus, the defendant must prove to the court that he or she was incapable of forming mens rea to have a chance at winning the case.  

The legitimacy of the insanity defense and whether or not it needs to be reformed is definitely arguable. The general public believes that the insanity plea is used far more often than it is. Also, there have been cases where those who were clearly insane and needed help were found guilty. To help address my issue, I will need to add examples of this and ways in which it can be solved for the betterment of mentally ill persons. All of my sources agree on the fact that the insanity defense is rarely used and rarely successful, but one calls for reform while the others do not. After seeing a necessity for reform, I believe it is important for me to include that in my research paper, which will help address my issue in 2,500 words. 

