Reference no: EM131945714

Here's What We Do in Pennsylvania

This Post is mostly to share Pennsylvania's approach:

We have GBMI and Insanity. GBMI recognizes those situations where an individual has a mental disease or defect (broader than just a disease) and lacks "substantial capacity," thus a broader defense than insanity.

This is the statute.

A posting requirement is given at the end of Pennsylvania's statute:

§ 314. Guilty but mentally ill.

(a) General rule. --A person who timely offers a defense of insanity in accordance with the Rules of Criminal Procedure may be found "guilty but mentally ill" at trial if the trier of facts finds, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the person is guilty of an offense, was mentally ill at the time of the commission of the offense and was not legally insane at the time of the commission of the offense.

(b) Plea of guilty but mentally ill. --A person who waives his right to trial may plead guilty but mentally ill. No plea of guilty but mentally ill may be accepted by the trial judge until he has examined all reports prepared pursuant to the Rules of Criminal Procedure, has held a hearing on the sole issue of the defendant's mental illness at which either party may present evidence and is satisfied that the defendant was mentally ill at the time of the offense to which the plea is entered. If the trial judge refuses to accept a plea of guilty but mentally ill, the defendant shall be permitted to withdraw his plea.

A defendant whose plea is not accepted by the court shall be entitled to a jury trial, except that if a defendant subsequently waives his right to a jury trial, the judge who presided at the hearing on mental illness shall not preside at the trial.

(c) Definitions. --For the purposes of this section and 42 Pa.C.S. § 9727 (relating to disposition of persons found guilty but mentally ill):

(1) "Mentally ill." One who as a result of mental disease or defect, lacks substantial capacity either to appreciate the wrongfulness of his conduct or to conform his conduct to the requirements of the law.

(2) "Legal insanity." At the time of the commission of the act, the defendant was laboring under such a 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.

(d) Common law M'Naghten's Rule preserved. --Nothing in this section shall be deemed to repeal or otherwise abrogate the common law defense of insanity (M'Naghten's Rule) in effect in this Commonwealth on the effective date of this section.

(Dec. 15, 1982, P.L.1262, No.286, eff. 90 days)

1982 Amendment. Act 286 added section 314. Section 4 of Act 286 provided that Act 286 shall apply to all indictments or information's filed on or after the effective date of Act 286.

Cross References. Section 314 is referred to in section 9727 of Title 42 (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure).

§ 315. Insanity.

(a) General rule. --The mental soundness of an actor engaged in the conduct charged to constitute an offense shall only be a defense to the charged offense when the actor proves by a preponderance of the evidence that the actor was legally insane at the time of the commission of the offense.

(b) Definition. --For purposes of this section, the phrase "legally insane" means that, at the time of the commission of the offense, the actor was laboring under such a defect of reason, from disease of the mind, as not to know the nature and quality of the act he was doing or, if the actor did know the quality of the act, that he did not know that what he was doing was wrong.

(Dec. 15, 1982, P.L.1262, No.286, eff. 90 days)

1982 Amendment. Act 286 added section 315. Section 4 of Act 286 provided that Act 286 shall apply to all indictments or information's filed on or after the effective date of Act 286.