A Forensic Psychologist On the Insanity Defense

My forensic workup is a good deal more intensive than that of most other forensic psychologists, but anything less would not satisfy my standard for formulating an opinion "with a reasonable degree of psychological certainty," which is what New York's insanity defense statute calls for. What goes on in the mind of a murderer at the moment of his crime will always remain unknowable. But I believe it is my professional mandate to make the most thorough, informed, and educated judgment I can. [Critics of this branch of psychology would call it an educated guess. Forensic psychologists routinely testify against each other in insanity defense cases.]

Dr. Barbara R. Kirwin, The Mad, The Bad, and the Innocent, 1997