The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-05-07

crime on the ground of insanity, jury
should be specially chosen for their fitness to
try the special plea, and if the prisoner after
trial, is found insane, that then he shall be
confined in an insane prison certain time
commensurate with the character of the
crime and if the verdict of the jury is in
favor of his sanity, that then the plea shall
not be allowed upon the trial of the cause"
This plan would simplify criminal trials
very much and greater justice would be done
under it. For one jury to sit as experts in
sanity as well as to pronounce his guilt or
innocence is more than should be expected.
The one is almost certain 10 impinge upon
the other, to the detriment of the best inter-
ests of law and order Continuing Mr. Cork
hill said:
"But there is a class, well known aad rec
ognlzed in every community, who by their
cratic character, their vanity, their egotisti-
cal declaration, crowd themselves into every
association, and by their arrogant assump-
ton become prominent They are not always
men who wear long hair, nor women who
wear short hair. / know no peculiar trade
mark by which they can be at once detected
but they are everywhere. You have them in
your society unless the press misreports
some of your discussions. They are doctors
without patients lawyers without clients
and ministers without parishes. Without ever
having done an honest day toll, they crowd
themselves into labor and trade organiza-
tions and assume to be representative men;
they are the most earnest in temperance and
religious organizations; they elamor for posi-
ton in every enterprise having for its object
any public reformation; they denounce vice
on every public OCCASION. they say long
prayers and affect great piety and virtue; and
yet they are the true, representative traitors
murderers, thieves, ravishers and scoundrels
of communities, and when one of them COM
mits crime the entire race of vagabonds
join in the clamor for the exemption from
punishment on the ground of insanity.
There has been a word coined of late years
to designate these people, and they are called
'cranks. They figure largely in the list of
criminals accused of all grades of crime, and
it is to them belongs the disgrace brought
upon the plea of insanity as defense for
crime With them judgment and execution
should be swift sure and certain for the es-
cape of one of these men encourages the en-
tire class to go ON committing crimes for like
notorety and like exemption. They we'll
know they commit crime and deserve pun
ishment, and when the knife of justice falls
upon one of their number it strikes them
with horror; but to every honest citizen it is
glad announcement that the law is supreme
and that its execution cannot be avoided by
a miserable scoundrel claiming he was a
crank"
The medical men present were divided in
their opinions of what the speaker advanced,
some approving them as a whole, while 9TH
ers made exceptions. This is a subject that
cannot receive too much attention. 1t is be-
fore our courts of justice somewhere all the
time. A regular way should be devised to
meet this universal and generally effective
plea of insanity. The mentally irresponsible
should be spared, but the criminals who
make the specious plea simply to escape de-
served punishment, should be exposed and
tried on the merits of their misdeeds