In the 1977 Michigan case, Stephanie Howard killed her ex-husband while he slept by setting fire to the house in which they were living together. She was charged with arson and felony murder, but was acquitted by reason of insanity after a lengthy and dramatic trial. The murder reflected the interaction of psychodynamic and sociocultural forces that drove Stephanie Howard to commit homicide. Formulations of the borderline syndrome or borderline personality organization are central to understanding psychodynamic forces, while formulations concerning the battered wife syndrome are essential to understanding sociocultural forces. Borderline personality disorder is defined as instability in various areas, including interpersonal behavior, mood, and self-image. Borderline persons experience brief psychotic episodes, including disassociative states. A battered wife is defined as a woman who has suffered serious or repeated physical injury from the man with whom she lives. Since 1975, the State of Michigan has used the American Law Institute's Model Penal Code formulation for determining an individual's mental and legal responsibility for a criminal act. This formulation makes no distinction between insanity and temporary insanity, and it is the jury's role to determine culpability. In the case of Stephanie Howard, the jury determined that the defendant warranted compassion rather than condemnation, and they acquitted her by reason of insanity. 19 references.