CPS chief: Let more accused use defence of insanity
MORE adults accused of crimes should avoid conviction because of mental illness, the head of the Crown Prosecution Service said last night.
Max Hill QC, the Director of Public Prosecutions, said the current law on mental health is ‘out of date’ and uses ‘stigmatising terminology’.
The law – partly dating back to the 1883 Trial of Lunatics Act – allows some defendants to be found unfit to enter a plea in court because of their state of mind at the time of the offence, or for defence lawyers to enter a plea of insanity.
But Mr Hill called for a rethink of the way mentally ill offenders are allowed to avoid prosecution – potentially widening the legal defence of insanity.
It could mean more offenders being ‘diverted’ from the criminal justice system and dealt with in another way, he said.
‘We, as a society and as a service, are changing and we are recognising the importance of mental health as well as physical health,’ said Mr Hill.
‘But criminal justice has not adapted. It has not moved forward with us. It is stigmatising and it is in need of change.
‘More needs to be done to assure ourselves that our system supports good decisions on whether a case should be taken through the criminal justice system,
‘Criminal justice has not adapted’
or diverted. A just outcome is that those who intend to do wrong are punished, and those who cannot be held responsible for their actions are appropriately treated.’
Giving the annual Parmoor Lecture, organised by penal reformers the Howard League, he said: ‘Public safety must be a significant consideration.
‘I am not suggesting we should stop prosecuting people with mental health conditions or disorders.
‘What we need to do is balance our approach and ensure that those with mental health conditions, and I’m including victims and witnesses, are treated fairly and proportionately.’
He said the current rules on when a plea of insanity can be successful lead to ‘very few’ people being found not guilty.
The Law Commission estimated in 2013 that there are only 30 successful insanity pleas each year in the crown courts.