NCJ Number
99521
Journal
Journal of Psychiatry and Law Volume: 11 Issue: 2 Dated: (Summer 1983) Pages: 125-136
Date Published
1984
Length
12 pages
Annotation
As the concept of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has become more widely publicized, it has been used as a defense for criminal charges in a number of court cases.
Abstract
The implications of PTSD for the insanity defense are examined with reference to case examples. It is concluded that in most cases the argument for a finding of insanity based on PTSD rests on invalid, deterministic reasoning. In rare cases, an individual with PTSD will experience a psychotic or dissociative episode and may then meet the criteria for legal insanity. (Publisher abstract)