First, it is very hard to judge whether or not a subject is insane. In the case of Kevin E. Reichardt, a sophomore from the University of North Carolina, who was killed by Wendell Williamson, Williamson was found "not guilty by reason of insanity." Psychiatrists all agreed the fact that Williamson was indeed insane at the time of the murder. But one of the defense mental health experts testified on the stand that her decision was the best guess. Typically, experts will generally tell what state of mind they "feel" or "think" the defendant is in (Schlosser, 50). One cannot deem someone insane just by beliefs.

Also, using the insanity plea is just another way for a person to flee from their personal responsibilities. In many cases, a person charged for a violent act of indiscretion, has blamed their reason on various sources including, drugs, alcohol, and even junk food. One case applies to a criminal claiming "cultural psychosis" when she killed another girl over a coat. Her reason was for the inner-city trauma that affects many others (Brownfield, 10). This is a perfect example of how we are allowing society to just brush off their wrongful decisions by either blaming society or their past. For about one hundred years, our country has termed criminal insanity as whether or not the criminal knows what they are doing at the time of the incident nor do they know about the degree of the crime. But psychiatrists argue that the word "'know' omitted emotional and unconscious aspects of behavior, as set forth by Freud and others" (Brownfield, 10). But instead they now use the term "temporarily insane" to excuse criminals. Once again, people are finding ways excuse individuals from taking responsibility for their actions. Not only are the criminals responsible, but so are the psychiatrists who are giving more and more reasons for criminals to get away with their actions.

Brownfield, Allan, C. (1994). Defense Attorneys Mad About Insanity Defense. Human Events, 50, 10.

Another problem with the insanity plea is that the defendants may actually be at a disadvantage when they plea insane. In a mock trial, jurors were able to evaluate insanity plea. They were al

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