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NEWS ABOUT: insanity defense

Reagan Shooter Seeks More Time on the Outside

'Convalescent leave' could get John Hinckley out full time

(Newser) - Ronald Reagan shooter John Hinckley is seeking more time outside a mental health facility, and might leave permanently, AP reports. Hinckley was sent to a Washington mental hospital after a jury decided he was insane when he wounded the president and three others in 1982. But he was granted a... More »

Swedish Killer: I Faked Insanity to Avoid Prison

And he got away with it—at first

(Newser) - After Mijailo Mijailovic murdered Swedish foreign minister Anna Lindh in 2003, he claimed voices in his head drove him to kill. But now he tells Sweden’s Expressen tabloid, “I didn't hear voices. That was nothing but empty talk.” In actuality, he adds, “I felt a... More »

Cops May Seek New Charge, Longer Sentence for Breivik

A conviction of crimes against humanity could mean 30 years

(Newser) - You were likely shocked to read that Anders Behring Breivik, who admitted to killing 76 people in two Norway terror attacks, faces a maximum of 21 years in prison —but Norwegian police are considering a new charge that could increase that amount. The current terror-related charges Breivik faces come... More »

'Red Bull Killer' Declared Insane

Though judge says case was never about energy drink

(Newser) - A Florida man who smothered his elderly father to death is going to a state hospital instead of a state prison. A judge declared that Stephen Coffeen "did not understand the wrongfulness of his actions" and found him not guilty by reason of insanity today, reports the St. Petersburg ... More »

Insanity Defense Will Be Tough for Loughner

Lawyer will be lucky if he avoids death penalty

(Newser) - Once upon a time, it would have been easy for Jared Lee Loughner’s lawyers to mount an insanity defense—after all, the guy sure seems nuts . But these days, that's easier said than done, legal experts tell the AP . Congress made it drastically harder to mount an insanity defense... More »

Cleveland's Accused Serial Killer Pleads Insanity

Anthony Sowell is charged with killing 11 women

(Newser) - Alleged serial killer Anthony Sowell pleaded insanity this morning as he was arraigned by video in the deaths of 11 women and assaults on three others in Cleveland. Sowell, 50, looked calmly into the camera, offering only brief polite responses as the judge read his rights and plea. Sowell will... More »

Hasan May Plead Insanity: Lawyer

Not-guilty plea likely in Fort Hood shooting

(AP) - Maj. Nidal Hasan, the Army psychiatrist accused of killing 13 people in a shooting spree at Fort Hood, Texas, will likely plead not guilty to the charges against him and may use an insanity defense at his military trial, his attorney said today. John Galligan, the civilian attorney for Hasan,... More »

Elizabeth Smart Recounts Daily Sexual Abuse

She testifies that captor uses religious rants to get his way

(Newser) - Elizabeth Smart delivered frank testimony in federal court today on the abuse she suffered at the hands of Brian David Mitchell during a 9-month abduction, describing how Mitchell used religion to justify repeatedly raping her. Smart, 14 at the time, said Mitchell chained her leg to a tree at the... More »

DA's 'Smear' Should Nix Conviction: 'Rockefeller'

(Newser) - Lawyers for Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter—aka Clark Rockefeller—want his conviction overturned because the jury was unfairly prejudiced against their client, the Boston Globe reports. Rockefeller was found guilty of kidnapping his daughter. The lawyers say the prosecution “eviscerated” their insanity defense during closing arguments by calling an unqualified... More »

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