This plea rarely works. And yet, some of the most famous mass murderers have attempted it

辯護成功的例子很少。然而，有些有名的殺人魔就曾試過

Just this month, Eddie Ray Routh, the killer of ‘American Sniper,' Chris Kyle, was deemed sane by the jury

這個月，槍殺「美國狙擊手」凱爾的兇手羅斯，雖然以精神異常辯護

despite his insanity plea, and convicted of murder. So why is it so hard to prove insanity?

卻被陪審團認定精神正常、判謀殺罪。為什麼證明精神異常這麼難？

First of all, pleading insanity means that you admit to the crime itself

首先，精神異常辯護表示認罪

but you’re not responsible — because you’re insane

但因喪失心神而無責任能力

Also, you should not be put in prison or sentenced to death

不該被判入獄或死刑

The problem is, that it’s hard to prove insanity. In most US courts, the burden of proof is on the accused

問題在於證明精神異常很難，在美國法院中，被告負舉證責任

A defendant must prove beyond a reasonable doubt

被告必須排除合理懷疑

that he or she was so mentally ill, they didn’t know right from wrong during the crime

證明犯案當下精神狀態異常，無法分辨是非對錯

In the Routh case, during the closing argument, the prosecution highlighted the fact that Routh did have enough mental capacity after the murder to order a burrito at a fast food restaurant.

羅斯一案中，檢方結辯時強調，羅斯犯案後還到快餐店買捲餅，足證精神狀態正常

If he was insane, according to the prosecution, this food-trip would be unlikely

檢方表示，若他精神異常就不太可能這麼做

Another reason the insanity plea usually doesn’t work, according to several lawyers

多位律師認為，精神異常辯護通常無法成功

is that jurors are hesitant to acquit people who have committed horrible crimes

是因為陪審團不太可能無罪開釋重罪犯人

The insanity plea, at its basic level, is a plea of innocence

精神異常辯護基本上就是無罪辯護

People often feel that someone who is aware that they committed murder deserves to be convicted, and that the insanity plea is an “easy way out"

大眾認為若罪犯知道自己殺人就該被定罪，而精神異常辯護就是為了「方便脫罪」

Routh confessed to committing murder, yet pleaded insanity

羅斯承認殺人卻如此辯護

Despite a history of schizophrenia and PTSD, the jury convicted him. Similarly, in May 2014

雖曾患思覺失調症和創傷後壓力症候群，陪審團仍判定他有罪。2014 年 5 月也有相似案件

David Tarloff also tried the insanity plea, after he brutally killed his psychologist. He, too, suffered from schizophrenia

塔洛夫殘殺他的心理醫師，也用精神異常辯護，同為思覺失調症患者

necessitating several hospital stays. But again, the jury found him sane and guilty

他多次進出醫院治療，但陪審團同樣認定他精神正常、有罪

A 1995 report from “The American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law” says that

美國心理法律學會 1995 年提出報告

on average, insanity pleas are raised in less than 1% of criminal trials

提及精神異常辯護平均佔刑事案件中少於 1%

And only about a quarter of those pleas are successful

其中僅約 1/4 辯護成功

Often, the media frenzies over famous murderers who plead insanity - like Ted Bundy

媒體時常大肆報導，以精神異常辯護的殺人犯，如邦迪

And that creates a false idea that insanity pleas are common, and that they work

造成此類辯護很常見、又容易脫罪的錯誤印象

Many criminals do have severe mental health issues, and there are many ways of criminally processing them

許多罪犯的確有嚴重心理問題，仍有很多定罪方法

But for the majority of cases, in the United States, the insanity plea doesn’t work out

但美國大部分案件中，精神異常辯護都是以失敗收場

Our new network Seeker has officially launched and there is some awesome stuff I really wanna recommend to you

新頻道 Seeker 正式推出，強烈建議各位去看精彩影片

This Happened Here takes a look at the stories

「此時此刻」單元述說全球各地風景美照

behind some of the most amazing and beautiful photos from around the world

背後的故事

The trip across the glacier wasn't a walk in the park either

橫跨冰河之旅可不輕鬆

The shifting ice can send rocks and debris tumbling randomly down the slope

漂移的冰層可能使碎石崩落、滾下斜坡

and there's the occasional massive hole to watch out for

還要隨時注意巨大的冰層裂縫

Click the link at the very top of the description to see more. Let us know what you think

點擊底下連結觀看更多，留言寫下想法

and thanks for watching TestTube.

感謝觀賞 TestTube