Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Brain evidence is playing an increasing role in criminal trials in the United States. An analysis indicates that brain evidence such as MRI or CAT scans – meant to provide proof of abnormalities, brain damage or disorder in defendants – was used for leniency in approximately 5 percent of murder cases at the appellate level. This number jumps to an astounding 25 percent in death penalty trials. In these cases, the evidence is meant to show that the defendant lacked the capacity to control his action. In essence, “My brain made me do it.”
But does evidence of neurobiological disorder or abnormality tend to help or hurt the defendant?
Legal theorists have previously portrayed physical evidence of brain dysfunction as a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it might decrease a judge’s or juror’s desire to punish by minimizing the offender’s perceived responsibility for his transgressions. The thinking would be that the crime resulted from disordered brain activity, not any choice on the part of the offender.
On the other hand, brain evidence could increase punitive motivations toward the offender by making him seem more dangerous. That is, if the offender’s brain truly “made him” commit the crime, there is an increased risk such behavior could occur again, even multiple times, in the future.
My biggest question about this situation is what does society do with them? We do have people with criminal behavior who create the majority of the crime and clog the court systems. They appear to be incapable of being rehabilitated.
Locking them up and going through the motions of justice and rehabilitation is a senseless expense we are currently committed to fulfilling and an endless irritation to them and their families. An honest and logical society would eventually come to the conclusion that the process is a time-consuming, expensive and empty charade.
So what is the most humane response to these unfortunates?
First, let me get the "capable of self-control" out of the way, then to those lacking it.
Second, brain scan is just a tool, which like all other tools has its limits and purposes.
If the scan, plus past record of social behavior, shows they truly have the capability to refuse the temptation to commit an act, espeically if they clearly know beforehand the act is wrong -- then yes, treat them as criminals (within reason, of course).
If they scan, plus all the same, shows they truly lack such self-discipline, self-management, capacity to know right from wrong -- they should be sent to a psychiatric hospital .
My mother's stepfather suffered a brain injury from a fall. The brain injury had a profound effect on him. His personality changed from being outgoing, fun, and friendly to short-tempered, mean, and grouchy. He was a very different person after the accidental fall.
Psihiatric hospitals are of no use. No being will come out of it any better than it went in it. Just worse. No behaviour correction will happen by use of psychotic medication. More like the menatly disable individual should be retrained at some secluded places and slowly brought back in civilization, with option of family members or friends to visit them. Psihotic medication will just kill their brains faster and they will become more as plant where before they ended in therapy they had some animalistic behaviour. Industrilized west can take some notes from less advanced east.
Some religious instituitions (eastern christian) have it as work therapy and being part of team taking care of monastry.
Psihiatric hospitals are of no use. No being will come out of it any better than it went in it. Just worse. No behaviour correction will happen by use of psychotic medication. More like the menatly disable individual should be retrained at some secluded places and slowly brought back in civilization, with option of family members or friends to visit them. Psihotic medication will just kill their brains faster and they will become more as plant where before they ended in therapy they had some animalistic behaviour. Industrilized west can take some notes from less advanced east.
Some religious instituitions (eastern christian) have it as work therapy and being part of team taking care of monastry.
There's a new generation of psych meds, that are better tolerated by the patients. They don't have the harsh side effects the earlier ones did.
Yes, the "holy fool" tradition in the Orthodox Church is interesting. There is some evidence, that scizophrenia can be healed with a certain type of intensive therapy. The theory is, that some cases are due to early childhood trauma, so if the trauma can be healed, the patient will begin to improve. This is controversial, but a psychotherapist got good results with a patient using basically round-the-clock therapeutic techniques, and wrote a book documenting her process and the results.
I have some knowledge of what those brain scans mean. It shows where brain damage has taken place in the brain mass and stem so doctors can determine what functions are damaged. It is thought that brain damage during the first 7 years of life happens when the brain is growing and we should be forming healthy brain patterns and connect rapidly developing synapses. Adult brain injuries will alter brain function; concussion, work and auto accidents.
Damage, underdevelopment or hypersensitivity, parts of the brain missing or eaten away by disease:
Limbic brain: regulate emotions....
Cerebral cortex: good conscience...
Cerebelum: judge, reason, problem solving...
Prefrontal cortex: psychopaths, sociopaths...
Amygdala: compassion
Damage to child's brain: beatings, injury in playground, neglect, fevers, mental abuse, sexual abuse, prolonged malnutrition and dehydration, broken bones, exposure to environmental pollutants, parts of the brain missing in utero. Brain development can also go into "remission" at the time and year traumatic events took place. For example, sexual abuse at 12 years old: emotional development will be interrupted.
What's your point? I'm tempted to say you mean doing something - controversial - to them, but I don't want to slander you.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
