Psychiatric Aspects of Justification, Excuse and Mitigation in Anglo-American Criminal Law Forensic Focus Thisseries,editedbyGwenAdshead,takesthefieldofForensicPsychotherapyasits focalpoint,offeringaforumforthepresentationoftheoreticalandclinicalissues.Italso embraces such influential neighbouring disciplines as language, law, literature, criminology,ethicsandphilosophy,aswellaspsychiatryandpsychology,itsestablished progenitors. Forensic Psychotherapy Crime, Psychodynamics and the Offender Patient Edited by Christopher Cordess and Murray Cox Forensic Focus 1 ISBN 1 85302 634 4 pb ISBN 1 85302 240 3 slipcased 2 vol hb A Practical Guide to Forensic Psychotherapy Edited by Estela V. Welldon and Cleo Van Velsen Forensic Focus 3 ISBN 1 85302 389 2 Remorse and Reparation Edited by Murray Cox Forensic Focus 7 ISBN 1 85302 452 X pb ISBN 1 85302 451 1 hb Psychiatric Assessment Pre and Post Admission Assessment Valerie Anne Brown Forensic Focus 8 ISBN 1 85302 575 5 A4 Managing High Security Psychiatric Care Edited by Charles Kaye and Alan Franey Forensic Focus 9 ISBN 1 85302 581 X pb ISBN 1 85302 582 8 hb Working with Sex Offenders in Prisons and Through Release in the Community A Handbook Alec Spencer Forensic Focus 15 ISBN 1 85302 767 7 Forensic Focus 17 Psychiatric Aspects of Justification, Excuse and Mitigation in Anglo-American Criminal Law Alec Buchanan Jessica Kingsley Publishers London and Philadelphia All rights reserved. No part ofthis publication may be reproduced in any material form (including photocopying or storing it in any medium by electronic means and whether or not transiently or incidentally to some other use ofthis publication) without the written permission ofthe copyright owner except in accordance with the provisions ofthe Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms ofa licence issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London, England W1T 4LP. Applications for the copyright owner’s written permission to reproduce any part ofthis publication should be addressed to the publisher. The right ofAlec Buchanan to be identified as author ofthis work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. This edition published in the United Kingdom in 2000 by Jessica Kingsley Publishers 116PentonvilleRoad London N1 9JB, UK and 400 Market Street, Suite 400 Philadelphia, PA 19106, USA www.jkp.com Copyright © Alec Buchanan 2000 Library ofCongressCataloging-in-Publication Data Buchanan, Alec. Psychiatric aspects ofjustification, excuse, and mitigation : the jurisprudence of mental abnormality in Anglo-American criminal law / Alec Buchanan. p. cm. -- (Forensic focus ; 17) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 1-85302-797-9 (pb : alk. paper) 1. Insanity--Jurisprudence--United States. 2. Insanity--Jurisprudence--Great Britain. I. Title. II. Series. KF9242.B83 1999 345.73’04--dc21 99-042862 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Buchanan, Alec. Psychiatric aspects ofjustification, excuse, and mitigation : the jurisprudence of mental abnormality in Anglo-American criminal law. - (Forensic focus ; 17) 1. Insanity - Jurisprudence - England 2. Insanity - Jurisprudence - United States 4. Forensic psychiatry 5. Justification (Law) 6. Extenuating circumstances I. Title 345’.04 ISBN 1853027979 ISBN-13: 987 1 85302 797 0 ISBN-10: 1 85302 797 9 ISBN pdfeBook: 1 84642 005 9 Printed and Bound in Great Britain by Athenaeum Press, Gateshead,Tyneand Wear Contents preface and acknowledgements 9 1. Preliminaries 11 2. The Theory of Justification and Excuse 22 3. Psychiatric Aspects of Mitigation 43 4. How Can Mental States Excuse? 63 5. What Does the Law Allow to Excuse? 84 6. Drawbacks of the Present Provision 108 7. Alternatives to the Present Provision 121 8. Summary 133 cases cited 135 references 139 subject index 151 author index 157 To Teresa Anne Preface and Acknowledgements Iarguehereforcertainprinciplesagainstwhichtheadequacyofthecriminallaw’s treatment of mentally abnormal offenders should be judged and for some alternativestocurrentprovision.Theargumentdrawsonmaterialfromarangeof sources including philosophy, criminology, the law and psychology as well as psychiatry. I have notattemptedtoprovide a comprehensive descriptionof the law; this has already been done, mostnotably inEngland by Professor Ronnie MacKay. Nor have I sought to provide detailed reviews of the other specialist areasuponwhichIhavetouched.Ihopethat,asaresult,thetrailoftheargument remains visible. The book is a development of work which I undertook at the Institute of CriminologyinCambridgewhileinreceiptofatrainingfellowshipfundedbythe SpecialHospitalsServiceAuthority.Iamindebtedtothelibrarian,HelenKrarup, andtheInstitutestaff.ProfessorJohnSpencer,MrGrahamVirgoandProfessor Tony Smith read and commented upon earlier versions of the manuscript. My thanks are due also to Professor John Gunn of the Department of Forensic Psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry and Dr Paul Bowden of the Maudsley Hospital. Dr Gwen Adshead encouraged my interest in this area soon after I started to train as a psychiatrist. Professor Nigel Walker supervised my work in Cambridge, was a constant sourceofsupportandconstructivecriticismandencouragedmetothink.Mineis theresponsibility,criminalorotherwise,forerrorsandinfelicitiescausedbymy failing to do so. 9