LafayetteLady
Posts: 7683
Joined: 5/2/2007
From: Northern New Jersey
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I was one of the ones who stated that the man who killed the child needed psychological help. I did NOT say however, that he should not face any punishment for this crimes.
For the record, he most definately will NOT receive the death penalty regardless of mental illness or if he is just a twisted fuck. New York's capital punishment law was declared unconstitional per "People v. Stepen LaSalle" in June of 2004. So that part is really a non issue.
What many people don't understand is that the concept of "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest" is not necessarily the way it works. If one is found "incompetent to stand trial" due to mental illness in the state of Florida, they will be put into a mental institution, however, they can only be held there for a maximum term of five years, after which they don't then face trial for their crime. Florida, by the way, DOES use capital punishment.
As for Donna Simpson, I think that she should lose custody of her child, because a child is not supposed to be caring for a parent (at that age, and to that extent). I did not read the link, although recently read or saw something about her on the news. I have less sympathy for her, because while I do believe she obviously has some psychological issues that she needs help with, I think that she was overweight and is justifying her weight and continued weight gain by saying she is attempting to make the world record.
Legally, "insanity" is not such an easy claim as many people claim it to be, and yes, it is more of a legal term than a medical one (not to say that there aren't professionals who would say someone was nuttier than a fruitcake). From a legal standpoint, "insanity" and even "temporary insanity" has very specific criteria that must be met. Simply being schizophrenic or bi-polar are not in and of themselves a legitimate defense for any crime. It must be proven that the person has no concept of right or wrong, is unable to differentiate why they should not do something.
Son of Sam, Charles Manson are two good examples of people who definately suffer from serious pyschological issues, and, if I remember correctly, Son of Sam's defense was that he was "insane," with his dog telling him to commit the murders. In essense, he was claiming that he was schizophrenic and couldn't help what he was doing. He lost because he did know the difference between right and wrong, and even a paranoid schizophrenic who hears voices telling him to kill or do something else, has the ability (however hindered) to know it is wrong. Charles Manson, who, regardless of whether "professionals" like the term or not, was a fucking nutcase. He is definately suffering from several mental illnesses, many which were the result of the majority of his life prior to the Tate murders being spent in the correctional system. But he still knew it was wrong to do what he did, he just didnt' care.
On the other hand, a woman who was abused for years by her husband who finally snaps and kills him, such as Donna Yankovic or Frances Hughes (the latter the subject of the movie "The Burning Bed") went on the defense of "Battered Woman Syndrome (I think Frances Hughes was the very first case of that kind.). At the moment they killed their husband, they were not in their "right mind," although Donna Yankovic's BWS defense failed because she hired someone else to do the killing.
The man who killed that boy, without a doubt, suffered some kind of psychotic break. He didn't try to elude capture, when the police came to his door, he showed them where the boy's remains were. When asked why he did it, he responded "I don't know." Now, make no mistake, I don't think that excuses what he did in any way, but I also believe that law enforcement, especially somewhere like NYC have enough experience with "excuses" that they know when someone is trying to "play" nuts.
Do I have the same sympathy for someone like Manson or Jeffrey Dahmer, both of whom have mental healthness issues? Not at all. If the investigation turns up evidence that this man in NYC has harmed other children and just gotten away with it, my opinon will undoubtedly change. But at this point in the case, I believe this man should be housed in a mental institution equipped to handle violent criminals so that sufficient examinations and therapy can be conducted, and so that there is enough information for his trial.
As for Donna Simpson, I hope someone takes her child away, and she dies before ever achieving her world record hope. I say this because while I believe she does have psychological issues that need to be dealt with, I don't think they have any bearing on her ability to think coherently enough to know that she is eating herself to death. To say so, would be akin to claiming that every person who is overweight and has difficulty dieting and losing weight suffer from mental illness that causes them to do so. Many of us are "comfort eaters" or "stress eaters," it doesn't mean we suffer from severe mental illness.
So I guess the reason I feel more sympathy for one than the other, is that one is controllable and the other is not.
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