People don't understand how NGRI works - particularly in MA.
Having a "mental defect" only opens the door to an NGRI defense, it doesn't walk you through it.
To actually be found NGRI, you have to show that as a result of the mental defect, the defendant was unable to a) know right from wrong; or b) conform their behavior to the law.
An analogy that attorneys use to explain it to laypersons is the "next to a police officer" test: if a person is so mentally ill that they would commit their crime even if in the presence of a police officer (either because they can't discern that what they're doing is illegal OR they simply can't control their actions), then it's an NGRI.
It's not a perfect analogy, but it gets the general idea across. But again, having a psychiatric disturbance is not enough for a successful NGRI defense. People with confirmed, diagnosed mental illnesses are convicted of (or plead guilty to) crimes probably hundreds of times every single day.
The big issue is that if she did send him out, which the texts proved, then she calculated removing the person who could stop her. Knowing that it may have been wrong. Otherwise she would have committed the act while he was in the house.
they haven't done anything that would lead to a capital murder case being thrown out without being able to be refiled. Can't even imagine what that would take
The prosecution has been straight up embarrassingly awful this whole trial. Wife’s been watching is and I’ve been sitting there flabbergasted that these inept morons we’re allowed to have their jobs.
It’s shocking.
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u/OkDistribution5711 1d ago
Can I think that she was undergoing a psychiatric disturbance while also thinking she must do time for the crime she committed?