M Civ JI 174.13 Felonious and Intentional Killing: Legal Insanity - Definition

[ Name of respondent ] has a valid defense if, at the time [ he / she ] caused the death of [ name of decedent ] [ he / she ] was legally insane.

[ Name of respondent ] was legally insane if, as a result of [ mental illness / and / or / mental retardation ], [ he / she ] lacked substantial capacity either to appreciate the nature and quality or the wrongfulness of [ his / her ] conduct or to conform [ his / her ] conduct to the requirements of law.

However, [ name of respondent ] was legally sane if:

(a) [ he / she ] was not mentally ill or mentally retarded, or

(b) despite [ mental illness / and / or / mental retardation ], [ name of respondent ] possessed substantial capacity both to appreciate the nature and quality and the wrongfulness of [ his / her ] conduct and to conform [ his / her ] conduct to the requirements of law.

*(“Mental illness” means a substantial disorder of thought or mood that significantly impairs a person’s judgment, behavior, capacity to recognize reality, or ability to cope with the ordinary demands of life.)

*(“Mental retardation” means significantly subaverage general intellectual functioning that originates during the developmental period and is associated with impairment in adaptive behavior.)

*(If [ name of respondent ] was under the influence of voluntarily consumed or injected alcohol or controlled substances at the time of the alleged killing, [ he / she ] is not considered to have been legally insane solely because of being under the influence of the alcohol or controlled substances.)

Note on Use

*The court should select the paragraphs that are applicable to the case. This instruction should be inserted in section c of M Civ JI 174.02 if applicable.

Comment

See MCL 768.21a. (legal insanity); MCL 330.1400(g) (mental illness); MCL 330.2001a(6) (mental retardation). See also the Commentary to M Crim JI 7.11 Legal Insanity; Mental Illness; Intellectual Disability; Burden of Proof.

History

M Civ JI 174.13 was added February 1986. Amended December 1, 2002. ​