PSYC 2120 Lecture Notes - Lecture 46: Fundamental Attribution Error, Psychopathy
Document Summary
On mental illness and the death penalty: there are a broader range of concerns that make the death penalty unethical. When determining if the death penalty is appropriate, it is important to consider the situational context. The law states that those with mental illness are not to be criminally responsible. The court defines mental illness if a person was unaware of their actions and unable to distinish right from wrong. The definition of this is very vague and fails to address that the majority of those with metal illness act perfectly rational and are able to comprehend their actions. Despite the courts claim of exempting those with mental illness, an estimated of 20 percent of those on death row have severe mental illness. There are twenty times more people with mental illnesses being trapped in prisons than there are hospitals and psychiatric institutions.
