Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id LAA16998 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Sun, 17 Mar 2002 11:18:25 GMT Message-ID: <000f01c1cda5$e22d44c0$b5a9eb3e@default> From: "Kenneth Van Oost" <Kenneth.Van.Oost@village.uunet.be> To: <kennethvanoost@myrealbox.com> References: <NEBBKOADILIOKGDJLPMAAEMBCMAA.debivort@umd5.umd.edu> Subject: Re: question about memes Date: Sun, 17 Mar 2002 12:20:48 +0100 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.00.2314.1300 X-MIMEOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.00.2314.1300 Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
----- Original Message -----
From: Lawrence DeBivort <debivort@umd5.umd.edu>
> The insanity defense has always intrigued me, as it seems to suggest that
> the greater and more bizarre the crime, the more credibility the claim of
> insanity would be. Might this not simply encourage petty criminals and
> killers to exaggerate the nature of their crimes so as to lay the
groundwork
> for an insanity plea? It is no wonder that juries are skeptical, and, I
> think, properly so.
Lawrence,
Yes, but the difference, at least here in Belgium, insane people get treated
and walk away freely after a few years ( healed !?). In that sense the in-
sanity plea is the best, possible avaible to get Yates of the hook.
The plea is the closest one the defense will ever get to get an acquittal.
And I don 't think petty criminals will encourage themselves to plea for
insanity, though.
We had here, a few weeks ago the Pandy- case. Father and daughter,
mixed up in incestious relationship, allegedly killed 6 family-members and
let disappear their bodies by dripping them into an acid bath of some
toilet- destop- product.
Exaggerated, no it works, insanity- plea no !
The defense argued that there were no bodies found, so no crime was
committed.
But father and daughter were comdemned. You need some bias to plea
insanity....
Regards,
Kenneth
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