Hundreds of Lindsay Clancy supporters, many wearing pink clothing emblazoned with phrases such as “Believe,” “She Needed Help” and “Peace For Lindsay,” gathered Thursday outside the courthouse where she is on trial in the killings of her three children.
Several of the 300 women, and a few men, said Clancy’s story resonated with them and that they wanted to raise awareness about how the mental health system treats women. Clancy’s lawyer does not dispute that she killed the children, but says she should not be held criminally responsible because she was mentally ill.
Part of proving a crime is proving “mens rea”, or “criminal mind.” Not all crimes, but most have to prove that you knew what you were doing was wrong and you chose to do it anyway. The mentally ill defense is to say you couldn’t form that criminal intent. That’s an exceptionally hard thing to prove. If she kept trying to check in because she was afraid she was dangerous, that’s already a sign that she knew she was doing things wrong.
And not guilty by reason of insanity doesn’t mean you get off scot-free. Usually it means commitment to a mental institution. (See: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.)
And also that mens rea doesn’t apply to all crimes that could be charged. Like “first degree murder” requires intent to kill while “manslaughter” usually requires intent to harm but not necessarily kill. “Reckless endangerment” likely doesn’t require that intent at all, just neglect to prevent a harm.
Those might not be the exact names or criteria of crimes depending on state, but that’s the general idea.
Yes, the exact verbiage depends on the state, but typically that’s the case.
Yes it’s fucked up when there is no help when she knew she was sick, and tried to get help.
We actually have that problem here too, even though we have healthcare for all, psychiatry is constantly short of capacity, and there are long waiting lists.