Diminished Responsibility: My Life as a U.K. Sub, and Other Strange Stories, vol. 1, Alvin Gibbs (2020)

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 332-334
Author(s):  
Russ Bestley
Keyword(s):  
Diminished Responsibility

Review of: Diminished Responsibility: My Life as a U.K. Sub, and Other Strange Stories, vol. 1, Alvin Gibbs (2020) Stratford-upon-Avon: Tome & Metre, 282 pp., ISBN 978-1-83801-160-4, p/bk, £15.00

Criminal insanity and psychiatric diagnoses in Greek penal cases

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. S593-S593
Author(s):  
G. Tzeferakos ◽  
M. Papaliaga ◽  
C. Papageorgiou ◽  
P. Bali ◽  
A. Douzenis
Keyword(s):  
Substance Use ◽  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Substance Use Disorder ◽  
Criminal Responsibility ◽  
Common Mental Disorder ◽  
Penal Code ◽  
Axis I ◽  
Criminal Insanity ◽  
Court Of Appeal ◽  
Diminished Responsibility

IntroductionTo our knowledge, few studies address the issue of criminal responsibility among psychiatric offenders. In Greece, articles 34 and 36 of the penal code regulate criminal insanity and diminished responsibility, respectively.ObjectivesThe objective of the present study was to provide psychiatric/legal data considering the appeal to articles 34/36 of the Greek penal code.MethodsLegal case files of 100 adult subjects, 90 male/10 female, 88 Greeks/12 foreigners were examined.ResultsAccording to the first degree court, one defendant was found criminally insane, 29 with partial responsibility, while the rest were regarded as fully capable. The decisions of the court of appeal/the supreme court of appeal were 2 criminally insane, 36 partially responsible and 62, fully criminally responsible. The decisions were unanimous in 78% of the cases.The most common diagnoses were schizophrenia spectrum psychosis (18%), antisocial/borderline/mixed personality disorder (15%) and substance use disorder (15%). Court decisions of criminal insanity/diminished responsibility were higher when the perpetrator had an Axis I diagnosis (47.5%), significantly lower in cases of personality disorder (22.2%) and even lower in cases of substance use disorder (16.7%). In patients with prior hospitalizations the percentage of criminal insanity/diminished responsibility was 55.6%, significantly higher than in cases without (24.4%).ConclusionsSchizophrenia is the most common mental disorder correlated with offenders criminally insane/partially responsible, while a history of psychiatric hospitalization is a very strong positive predictive factor for the successful appeal of the aforementioned articles.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Depression, Homicide and Diminished Responsibility: New Scottish directions

2003 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 195-202
Author(s):  
Philip Collins ◽  
Thomas White
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Depression ◽  
Trial Judge ◽  
Appeal Court ◽  
Diminished Responsibility

In a recent Scottish Appeal Court opinion ( Kim Louise Scarsbrook or Galbraith v. Her Majesty's Advocate, 2001) it was successfully argued by the appellant that her conviction of murder was unsound inter-alia on the basis of overly restrictive pre-existing definitions of diminished responsibility in Scottish law resulting in unduly narrow directions being given by the trial judge to the jury in her case. We felt it timely to present a revised overview of the defence of diminished responsibility in Scotland and to consider the issues surrounding its applicability in cases of clinical depression. The psychiatric literature regarding depression and homicide is reviewed.

R v Westwood (Thomas): diminished responsibility and disposals under the Mental Health Act 1983

2021 ◽  
Vol 72 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sean Mennim
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Mental Health Act ◽  
Court Of Appeal ◽  
Diminished Responsibility

This is a commentary on R v Westwood (Thomas), where the Court of Appeal of England and Wales held that the judge had erred in assessing Westwood’s ‘retained responsibility’ as medium to high under the Sentencing Council Guideline for manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility. Although the sentencing judge concluded that the offending was caused by Westwood’s anger, the Court of Appeal found the psychiatric evidence clearly indicated that the most significant factor was Westwood’s mental illness and that his anger at the time of the offence was a manifestation of his mental illness. Westwood’s responsibility was low, and it was appropriate to impose both a hospital and restriction order.  

scholarly journals Diminished responsibility and alcohol

2010 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 193-198 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nuwan Galappathie ◽  
Krishma Jethwa
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Law ◽  
Case Law ◽  
Law Reform ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Life Sentence ◽  
The Law ◽  
Diminished Responsibility

SummaryIn England and Wales diminished responsibility is a partial defence to the charge of murder. If successfully argued by the defence, it reduces the charge from murder to manslaughter and thus avoids the mandatory life sentence. Alcohol has been reported to be a feature in up to 80% of all homicides but for many years the judiciary have set an almost unattainable threshold for the disease of alcoholism to amount to a finding of diminished responsibility, in accordance with other aspects of criminal law. Reform of the law on murder is likely to take many years but it is timely to recap the current law on diminished responsibility and review advances in case law in England and Wales on alcohol.

scholarly journals Battered woman syndrome and PTSD in women who kill their abusing partner: a study in medical jurisprudence

BJPsych Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (S1) ◽  
pp. S266-S266
Author(s):  
Sharmilaa Lagunathan
Keyword(s):  
Battered Women ◽  
Medical Condition ◽  
Battered Woman ◽  
Law Reform ◽  
Rapid Review ◽  
Abused Women ◽  
Battered Woman Syndrome ◽  
Women Who Kill ◽  
Partial Defences ◽  
Diminished Responsibility

AimsThe aim of the study was to identify any symptoms or features of Battered Woman Syndrome (BWS) or Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) that may be associated with, or explain, abused women killing their abuser; and the extent to which such identified symptoms or features have been deemed, or are potentially relevant, to past and now reformed partial defences to murder in English law. Hence two sub-studies were completed.MethodThe first sub-study identified mental symptoms of BWS or PTSD apparent in battered women who kill their abuser; achieved by identifying relevant research papers, through applying a ‘rapid review’ approach to three databases: PubMed, PsychInfo and PsychArticles. The second sub-study identified by legal research reported Court of Appeal (CA) judgments on women appealing their conviction of the murder of their abusive partner. It then analysed the legal approach taken towards evidence of the effects of abuse upon these women before and after relevant statutory law reform (although no CA cases were identified post-reform).ResultThe first sub-study identified and reviewed six symptoms or features, within three quantitative and three qualitative studies, that appeared to be associated with, or described by, abused women killing their abuser. These included helplessness, symptoms associated with PTSD, plus fear, isolation, experience of escalation of violence and cycle of violence. From the CA cases the perpetrators of killings that occurred prior to 04.10.2010 (the date of law reform) were usually successful in having their conviction overturned based upon diminished responsibility; but not provocation, because of the requirement of ‘sudden loss of self control’. ‘Loss of control’, which replaced provocation, appears highly likely to be capable of reducing murder to manslaughter based upon symptoms of BWS, or PTSD. However, the amended defence of diminished responsibility is likely to exclude evidence of BWS, but allow evidence of PTSD, because of its requirement of the defendant suffering from ‘a recognised medical condition’.ConclusionThis study demonstrated particular symptoms or features of BWS or PTSD associated with abused women killing their abusers plus their very different relevance to two partial defences to murder, pre and post law reform.

scholarly journals Personality Disoder and Their Judicial- Psychiatric-estimation of the Russian Federation

2009 ◽  
Vol 24 (S1) ◽  
pp. 1-1
Author(s):  
S. Vasyukov ◽  
A. Baeva
Keyword(s):  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Mental Disorders ◽  
Personality Disorders ◽  
Criminal Law ◽  
Criminal Liability ◽  
Icd 10 ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Russian Federation ◽  
The Moment ◽  
Diminished Responsibility

In modern Russian criminal law means diminished responsibility, that the subject is not capable to regulate meaningly legally significant behaviour at the moment of socially dangerous act. Such disability comes at presence if the subject has the chronic or time mental disorder, an aphrenia or other disease state of mentality. The specified clinical phenomena define medical criterion of diminished responsibility. Special interest represents disorders which in ICD- 10 concern to «Personality Disorders» (F60-F68). Here mental disorders which have no so-called remedial basis are meant, or in their structure it is impossible to note signs of weakening process. At the same time they not only qualitatively differ from the accepted norm, but also under known conditions possess that depth or expression that can be regarded as medical criterion of the formula of diminished responsibility. The research which has been spent in the Department of psychogenias and personality disorders of Institute of Serbsky included 80 men at the age from 20 till 45 years by which the diagnosis «Personality disorder» was established. It has shown that there can be 3 variants of influence on responsibility: they can cause full loss of liability; can essentially reduce the criminal liability; their presence can be neutral and not render influences on liability. The analysis of expert judgements shows, that in expert judgements about disability of the subject to regulate the behaviour meaningly it is necessary to estimate components both medical, and psychological criteria of diminished responsibility.

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