Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1884-12-23
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: LANCASTER. DEcEMBER "a, lssl.
On ihe Ground Of Insanity.

The position taken by ATTORNEY General |
Cassidy, in the application made before a
Philadelphia court for the release of Emma |
Bickel from an insane asylum, invites
public attention, ut the very timely season
when the legislature is about assembling,
10 the grievous defects in the administra-
ton of the law in the case Of those who are
acquitted of crime upon the ground of
their insanity.
The law intends to provide that such
prisonets shall not be let loose upon the
community, but that they shall be securely
confined in lunatic asylum during The
period of their lunacy Bat, though this is
the direction of the law, practically the
community has little security against the
speedy return into il of these acquitted
lunatics. After their acquittal they sud-
denly recover their reason and ,iu fact even
,,t the time Of their trial and conviction
they sometimes claim to he OF sound mind
and confne the period of their insanity
strictly to the time of the commission of
the crime. As this however is a
somewhat dangerous claim, in view OF the
advisability of arousing the sympathy of
the jury for the defendant as one still
afflicted by the Lord, il is not often made
unless there are ether elements which are
relied upon to secure the iury's sympathy,
the defense of insanity being Il mere ban
dage for the eye OF the law.
After the prisoners acqmttal is secured
the commitment TO the insane asylum fol-
lows and in brief season the attorneys
come forward with an application for
release founded upon the allidavits Of
keepers and doctors that the prisoner is
sane. The proof suflices 10 show the fact
lard the court discharges the quondam
lunatic from confinement.
Now certainly, somewhere in the course
OF this proceeding great outrage has been
committed and great harm done to the
community. II may have been done when
the jury acquitted the accused as insane
when the act was done. But we do not
ourselves think that the error is often COM
mitted here We are ready TO believe that
the great majority of those whom jury
has acquitted as insane were really SO in
some degree ut least when tlleyperpctrated
their crime and at any rate the jury is
likely to have been right in leaning to the
side of mercy, since the law itself COM
mands that the benefit of doubt shall be
given to the prisoner at the bar, 1t is well
that this should be done and il will do
society no harm TO acquit OH the ground
Of insanity il the confinement for insanity
is made as sure and secure rs for crime.
afxy 1s 10 Jo no atli, +It+, Il
against insane us against sane violence (;
and the wrong is done to it when the in
sane prisoner is turned loose upon it, as
restored TO sanity, before his restoration
has been undeniably demonstrated in the
lapse Of years. Attorney General Cassidy
opposed the release Of Emma Bicke by an
order of the coutt. and took the position,
that her release should come only after
trial by jury Of the question of her sanity,
In this position he sustained District At
torney Graham. \ jury had found her
not guilty of an apparently cold blooded
and deliberate murder, because they
deliberately decided her t. have
been insane consequently, argued the
counsel for the commonwealth, the verdict
of jury declaring her sanity is needed to
displace the seal of insanity put upon her
by jury The argument seems TO be
strong one, and as the effect of 4 trial by
jury of the question of sanity would he TO
put a drag on the hasty release of insane
wrongdoers, we trust that il will he decided
that this method should be pursued
But il should not he left in the discretion
of either judge or jury TO release one who
has been acquitted of crime as insane, be-
fore the confinement has lasted long
enough to demonstrate the return of sanity.
The legislature should consider this matter
at the coming session, and we suggest that
II should enact that every one acquitted
of crime on the ground of insanity
shall be securely confined for a period of
not less than five years; and that they shall
not be released from such confinement save
upon its being clearly proved TO a jury that
they have shown no symptoms of insan-
ity during five years preceding. The
effect OF certain confinement for five
Years may be expected TO take largely from
the seduetiyeness of insanity as a prison
ers plea