FORENSIC PSYCHIATRY

Without ethics, a human race falls to inhumanity. Ethics determines your real value in this world
and the hereafter.” - Nazim Ambalath

 FORENSIC PSYCHIATRY

It deals with the legal aspects of psychiatry. Law comes in contact with psychiatry at many
points; for example, admission of a mentally ill person in a mental hospital, crime committed
by a mentally ill person, validity of marriage, witness, will, consent, right to vote, and drug
dependence.

The various legal aspects of psychiatry are briefly discussed below:

▣ Criminal responsibility
▣ Civil responsibility

1.  CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY: McNaughton Rules, Durham Rule, American Law

Institute (ALI) Test

I. CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY:

Though mentally abnormal offenders are only a small minority of all offenders the
psychiatrist can play an important role by helping to identify, assess and manage them.
The psychiatrist may be asked to give advice in relation to the following issues:

 The psychiatric management of offenders

 Diminished criminal responsibility.
 Mental state at the time of offence, before and during trial and during
imprisonment. Fitness to plead (Fitness to stand trial)

THE MCNAUGHTON RULES

Daniel McNaughton was a 29 year old, son of a Glasgow wood-turner, a man of 'gloomy
and reserved social habits' which included membership of religious groups and the Tory
party.

He decided to murder Sir Robert Peel, the Prime Minister. He made elaborate plans and
travelled to London, but in fact mistakenly shot and killed Edward Drummond, Peel's
private secretary, in daylight in front of numerous witnesses on 20th January,1843.

  During the trial, McNaughton himself admitted that "they have accused me of crimes of
which I am not guilty, they do everything to harass and prosecute me, in fact they wish to
murder me. I was driven to desperation by persecution".

McNaughton knew what he was doing and was aware that he was committing a criminal
act but felt compelled to do so, an act he performed with cool deliberation.
Psychiatrists were called and it was accepted:
 That the act was committed under a delusion.
 That his delusions were real.

McNaughton was found "not guiltily on the grounds of insanity". He himself was sent to
Bethlehem and later Broadmoor asylum where he died in 1865.

In McNaughton's case the Lord Chancellor put to a panel of His Majesty's Judges five
questions designed to clarify the legal position. Their replies given on 19th June 1843,
constitute the so- called 'McNaughton rules'.

The following contain the main points of the McNaughton's rules:

An insane person is punishable, if he knew at the time of committing such a crime that he
was acting contrary to law.
Every man is to be presumed to be sane, until the contrary be proved.

To establish a defence on the ground of insanity, it must be clearly proved that at the time
of the committing of the act, the accused was suffering under such defect of reason, from
disease of the mind, as not to know the nature and quality of the act he was doing, or if he
did know it, that he did not know he was doing what was wrong".

Finally it is the jury's role to decide whether the defendant was insane. The 'rules'
stressed the importance of the defendant's notion of understandability of right and wrong.

He must satisfy the above mentioned rule. A mentally retarded person (called ‘idiot’ in
law) is not considered liable under Indian criminal law.

The Law generally classifies criminal lunatics into three classes:

 an under-trial who cannot stand trial because of mental illness;

 guilty but insane;
 criminals who later become mentally ill.

A Class II ‘criminal lunatic’ is acquitted under the law but is detained in a mental hospital
(asylum) for further treatment.

-The McNaughton Rule is used in a slightly modified form in many countries even now.
In India, Section 84 of the Indian Penal Code (Act 45 of 1860) states that “nothing is an
offense, which is done by a person, who at the time of doing it, by reason of unsoundness
of mind, is incapable of knowing the nature of the act or that he is doing what is either
wrong or contrary to law”.
2.  DURHAM RULE (1954)

"An accused person is not criminally responsible, if his unlawful act is the product of
mental disease or mental defect". In this, the causal connection between the mental
abnormality and the alleged crime should be established. This rule is also known as
"Product Rule".

3.  AMERICAN LAW INSTITUTE (ALI) TEST

“A person is not responsible for criminal conduct if at the time of such conduct, as a
result of mental disease or defect he lacks adequate capacity either to appreciate the
criminality of his conduct or to conform his conduct to the requirements of the Law”.

The ALI Test is similar to the combination of the McNaughton rule and the Irresistible
Impulse Test. This rule excludes psychopaths. This popular test is now used by all courts
in the USA.

II. CIVIL RESPONSIBILITY

Marriage, Adoption, Testamentary Capacity, Vote, Witness, Contract, Transfer of

Properties

CIVIL RESPONSIBILITY
There is usually a presumption in the favour of sanity and the contrary must be proved.
This applies both to the civil and criminal proceedings in the court of law.

1. MARRIAGE

The Hindu Marriage Act (Act 25 of 1955) provides for conditions for a Hindu
marriage under Section 5. One of the conditions, i.e. Section 5 (ii) introduced by Act
68 of 1976, states that if a person is mentally ill at the time of marriage can be
declared null or void. The spouse can appeal for separation and divorced.

2. ADOPTION
Under the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act (Act 78 of 1956), any Hindu male
‘who is of sound mind and is not a minor’ can adopt a child, with the consent of his
wife unless ‘...(she) has been declared by a court...to be of unsound mind’ (Section 7).
Similarly, any Hindu female ‘who is of sound mind’, is not a minor, and is not
married, can adopt a child. If she is married, ‘then her husband is dead, or has
...renounced the world, or ...ceased to be a Hindu, or ...has been declared by a
court ...to be of unsound mind’ (Section 8). In addition, the person capable of giving
in adoption of a child should be of sound mind.
3.WITNESS
Under the Indian Evidence Act 1872, a ‘lunatic’ is not competent to give evidence if he is
prevented by virtue of his ‘lunacy’ from understanding the questions put to him and
 giving rational answers to them (Section 118). However, such a person can give evidence
during a lucid interval on discretion of the judge (and the jury).

4. TESTAMENTARY CAPACITY
Testamentary disposition is regulated by the Indian Succession Act (Act 39 of 1925).
Some of the salient points regarding testamentary disposition are as follows:
 A will must be in writing, though it need not to be registered.
 It must be signed by the testator in the presence of at least two witnesses.
 A legatee cannot test a will.
 An executor is appointed is appointed under the will by the testator to carry out its
term after his death.
 A will can be revoked or modified any time before the death of the testator.

5.  TRANSFER OF PROPERTY
 Under the Transfer of Property Act 1882 (Section 7), only persons competent to
contract, are authorized to transfer property.
 Mentally ill person is not able to managing their property.
 He cannot be selling or transfer his property to others.

6. CONTRACT
 Under the Indian Contract Act 1872 (Section 11), every person to be competent to
contract must be a major and of sound mind.
 A person is said to be of sound mind for the purposes of a contract, if at the time
of making a contract he is capable of understanding it and of forming a rational
judgment as to its effect upon his interests.

7. DRIVING
It is important that advice be given regarding driving if there is likelihood that driving can be
impaired by the nature of illness, prescribed medication and / or misuse of alcohol or drugs.

8. VOTE
 A person of unsound mind cannot contest for elections or exercise the privilege of
voting. In conclusion, nursing practice must confirm to pre-set legal standards and
continuously reorient itself to the ever evolving legal standards.
 It is only the motivated and capable nurse who can incorporate legal knowledge while
dispensing patient care and it is to her that many patients will turn for information and
care.

9. CONSENT:
Any mentally ill person cannot give consent for himself or herself.