Reply #92: Wrong again. [View All]

[H2O Man]

"NO state will let you claim 'I was too drunk/stoned to know what I was doing.'" I am reminded of Mark Twain's saying that the problems of the world were often not mere ignorance, but rather people knowing so darned much that simply was not true. To keep this simple, I will point out that in New York, while drug addiction is not a defense per say, attorneys frequently do defend clients by pointing out that there are issues with addiction. It is very common, in fact, for local judges and justices of the peace to refer such cases to "drug courts." Frequently, the accused is able to comply with recommended treatment, and ends up with no legal record.

Questions of legal competence, based on mental illness, are worthy of all of our attention. A rational person could make a case that there might be cause for a "guilty, but insane" status. As advances are made in the understanding of mental illness, the manner in which laws are applied should also advance.

It's a sad thing that there have been severe restrictions on habeas corpus petitions. The "great writ," as it is known, dates back to the Magna Carta. In 1868, the US Supreme court called it the "best and only sufficient defense of personal freedom." Rigid thinkers may believe that recent restrictions in the "great writ" are a good thing. I don't.

I do point it out, however, to show that the manner in which the law is interpreted and applied is subject to change. More, in what was commonly recognized by legal scholars as the most important habeas corpus case in the past century, the federal judge who decided the case spoke to the ideas of compassion and human decency.

I would submit that the St. Patrick's Four case could benefit from compassion and human decency. Indeed, the rigid thinking that is required to say otherwise would seem a most pathetic form of intoxication, and a signpost of a social insanity that one should pray is temporary.

Again, while you are within your rights to state that I am not competent to post my opinions on this issue, I am confident of my ability to go one-on-one with you, and let other DUers decide who is speaking the truth.