Not Criminally Responsible

[Tylerr]

Hi all,

I'm new to this site so correct me if I'm posting this in the wrong section. I'm a first year psychiatric nursing student and I have a term paper coming up. The topic is that individuals diagnosed with a mental health disorder who have committed a crime should be found Not Criminally Responsible. I am having trouble writing this paper and any thoughts or opinions would be extremely helpful. Thanks!

[roser13, ASN, RN]

Thank you all for the feedback. This definitely isn't my first essay as a uni student. What my opinion is and what I'm aruguing is that if an individual is diagnosed with a mental health disorder they should be found NOT criminally responsible. I have read through some academic articles and what I'm finding in common to support my argument is how prisons/jails worsen symptoms of mental illness and individuals would receive better/proper treatment in a hospital rather than behind bars. Should I save my last paragraph to explain the other side of the argument?

Have you taken any classes that are geared toward teaching research skills and effective construction of various types of papers/essays?

[Tylerr]

Have you taken any classes that are geared toward teaching research skills and effective construction of various types of papers/essays?

Apart of my first year is an English course that focuses on research papers, reading and writing.

[dishes, BSN, RN]

The topic is regarding criminal responsibility and mental health, the law is "No person is criminally responsible for an act committed or an omission made while suffering from a mental disorder that rendered the person incapable of appreciating the nature and quality of the act or omission or of knowing that it was wrong" You argument that a person with mental illness should not be found criminally responsible is overgeneralized, not all people with mental illness are incapable of appreciating the nature of their crime, for example most people with a drug addiction who commit crimes to feed their addiction, are fully capable of understanding that the crime they commit is wrong and are therefore considered criminally responsible.

[Tylerr]

The topic is regarding criminal responsibility and mental health, the law is "No person is criminally responsible for an act committed or an omission made while suffering from a mental disorder that rendered the person incapable of appreciating the nature and quality of the act or omission or of knowing that it was wrong" You argument that a person with mental illness should not be found criminally responsible is overgeneralized, not all people with mental illness are incapable of appreciating the nature of their crime, for example most people with a drug addiction who commit crimes to feed their addiction, are fully capable of understanding that the crime they commit is wrong and are therefore considered criminally responsible.

Very good point and controversy also comes from the assessment process in a court room where they determine if the individual is capable of acknowledging their crime. This is why I'm having trouble narrowing it down and starting to write.

[Horseshoe, BSN, RN]

I cannot imagine that there isn't reams of stuff on this in the medical/criminal literature.

If simply having any degree of mental illness meant that the perpetrator would be better served in a hospital, there would be no prisons.A huge percentage of people who commit crimes have some degree of mental illness. Even psychopathy/sociopathy, which many people just characterize as inherently evil or just a "bad seed" is officially considered a personality disorder/mental illness.

[dishes, BSN, RN]

@tylerr, what is the focus of the paper? is it on how courts prove NCR? is it on the reoffense rates of NCR? is it on the pros of NCR and forensic psychiatry vs mental illness and prison?

[NOADLS]

NCR = Defense Lawyer did a better job than the prosecutor.

I would be willing to bet that less than 1% of those found NCR are actually worthy of NCR.

[joanna73, BSN, RN]

OP is in Canada (where they do have specialized psych nursing degrees).

BC, Manitoba and Alberta have specialized psychiatric nursing programs. Nurses who have completed these programs are Registered Psychiatric Nurses (RPNs). Their licensing body has its own set of practice guidelines, similar to but separate from the RN.

[SeattleJess]

It might be useful to research the different legal standards for mens rea (guilty mind) in criminal law. (A crime is a guilty act + a guilty mind.) Then you could compare the results with different psych conditions based on how the defining characteristics compare to the legal standard. That's a tough assignment for a first year student.

[AnnieOaklyRN, BSN, RN, EMT-P]

LOL, I must have been really tired when I wrote that. I meant write not right, and it will not let me edit it!

Annie

[dishes, BSN, RN]

Thank you all for the feedback. This definitely isn't my first essay as a uni student. What my opinion is and what I'm aruguing is that if an individual is diagnosed with a mental health disorder they should be found NOT criminally responsible. I have read through some academic articles and what I'm finding in common to support my argument is how prisons/jails worsen symptoms of mental illness and individuals would receive better/proper treatment in a hospital rather than behind bars. Should I save my last paragraph to explain the other side of the argument?

In doing a comparison essay you give both sides of the argument in the body of the essay, the last paragragh is the conclusion, the conclusion supports the thesis.

[windsurfer8, BSN, RN]

Read peer reviewed articles and actual research. Not off the cuff random answers from people who may or may not be nurses What crime? Shoplifting? Murder? You go to court and you argue for not guilty by reason of insanity. You don't just tell the cop after you murder someone you can't be held responsible because you have a diagnosis of major depressive disorder and walk off into the sunset.