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The United States' Relationship With The Insanity Defense Before And After United States V. Hinckley, Natalie R. Peterman
The United States' Relationship With The Insanity Defense Before And After United States V. Hinckley, Natalie R. Peterman
Young Historians Conference
The United States legal system has had a fluctuating relationship with the insanity defense for decades, and the trial of United States v. Hinckley was a critical milestone for this development. Before John Hinckley, Jr. attempted to assassinate President Ronald Reagan in 1981 and the jury of his trial found him not guilty, American society generally supported the insanity defense, but both the public and the government were outraged after Hinckley’s verdict. This outrage and the subsequent political backlash against the insanity defense were motivated by progress in the area of mental illness treatment in the United States. In the …