STUDIES IN MENTAL INEFFICIENCY.

Report of the Committee on Insanity and Crime.* The report of the Committee on Insanity and Crime was published in Nov-

ember 1923. This Committee was constituted by the Lord Chancellor in July, 1922

' 'to consider and report upon what changes, if any, are desirable in the exist-

ing law, practice and procedure relating to criminal trials in which the plea of

insanity as a defence is raised, and whether any and, if so, what changes should be made in the existing law and practice in respect of cases falling within the pro- visions of Section 2, subsection (4) of the Criminal Lunatics Act, 1884."

On learning of the appointment of this Committee representative committees were established by the Council of the British Medical Association, with which were associated representatives of the Central Association for Mental Welfare, and by the Medico-Psychological Association. Both these sub-committees sub-

mitted reports (which are published in an appendix to this report) and appointed members to give evidence before the Committee.

After considering this evidence and stating briefly the reasons for its conclu- sions the Committee fm$s to the effect that the existing rule of the law is sound; that a person may be of unsound mind and yet be criminally responsible, provided that he knows the nature and quality of the act or knows that the act is wrong. No alteration, therefore, is suggested in the present rules of law for determining criminal responsibility as formulated in the rules in McNaughten's case laid down in 1843, although a very important addition is recommended, which will help very materially to remove the adverse criticism from the medical standpoint. It was

established to the satisfaction of the Committee that " there are cases of mental

disorder where the impulse to do a criminal act recurs with increasing force until it is, in fact, uncontrollable, "and it is thought advisable that such cases should be brought expressly within the law by decision or statute. It is recommended, therefore, that:?"It should be recognised that a person charged criminally with an offence is irresponsible for his act when the act is committed under an impulse which the prisoner was by mental disease in substance deprived of any power to resist.''

This recommendation gives effect to a view of the law which has been accepted by some authorities as being the existing law, and in fact in the opinion of the Committee such cases would now fall within the existing law; but as there seem to be definite decisions of the Court of Criminal Appeal against such a ruling and directions by some judges to the opposite effect, in order to remove all legal doubt it is considered advisable to make the law clear by an express statutory provision.

This extension is in accordance with the Criminal Code of Queensland, with the law of South Africa, and with the laws of other countries; and as long ago as 1874 the principle was recognised in this country, when provision was made for it in the Homicide Law Amendment Bill, which failed to pass into law. The

opinion then expressed by the Lord Chief Justice Cockburn to the Select Committee appointed to consider that Bill is still of sufficient interest to quote at some length: "As the law, as expounded by the Judges in the House of Lords now stands, it is

only when mental disease produces incapacity to distinguish between right and wrong that immunity from the penal consequences of crime is admitted. The

present Bill introduces a new element, the absence of the power of self-control,'' then he adds

" I concur most cordially in the proposed alteration of the law,

STUDIES IN MENTAL INEFFICIENCY.

having been always strongly of opinion that, as the pathology of insanity abun- dantly establishes, there are forms of mental disease in which though the person is quite aware he is about to do wrong, the will becomes overpowered by the force of irresistible impulse; the power of self-control when destroyed or suspended by mental disease becomes, I think, an essential element of responsibility.

The remainder of the first part of the Committee's report deals with observa- tions on the existing practice and procedure in criminal trials in which the defence of insanity is raised. It is advised that the illogical verdict of Guilty of the act but insane at the time" or "Guilty but insane," provision for which was made under Section 2 of the Trial of Lunatics Act 1883 in deference to the wishes of Her Majesty Queen Victoria, should be altered so as to restore the logical principle that where insanity is such as to produce irresponsibility, the accused is entitled to a verdict of acquiital of crime. A recommendation therefore is made that the

existing statutory provision in this respect should be amended and that the ver- dict should be '

'that the accused did the act (or made the omission) charged, but is not guilty on the ground that he is insane so as not to be responsible according to law at the time."

Two further recommendations are made by the Committee: (a) that pro- vision should be made under departmental regulations for the examination of an accused person by an expert medical adviser at the request of the prosecution, the defence or the committing magistrate, and (b) that accused persons should not be found on arraignment unfit to plead except on the evidence of at least two doctors, save in very clear cases.

The second part of the report details the history and development of the statu tory powers conferred upon the executive for dealing with prisoners certified during imprisonment to be insane, and examines the procedure under Section 2 (4) of the Criminal Lunatics Act 1884 for inquiring into the sanity of persons under sentence of death.

Quotations from eminent authorities from the time of Henry VIII are given to show that apart from statutory provisions it was contrary to common law to execute an insane criminal, and we are told that "since the Act of 184? we ave

indisputable authority for saying that no prisoner under sentence of death has ever been executed as to whom a certificate of insanity has been given un er t e

statute for the time being in force." }} The report concludes that ' 'to the insane person justice is done and recom-

mends that no alteration is called for in the Criminal Lunatics Act 1884. E. Prideaux.

*

??d. post fG ?k*a'ned froro H.M. Stationery Office, Imperial House,

Kingsway, W.C.2. Price