Abstract
When (if ever) should people be allowed to defend themselves against an accusation by saying that they acted upon an irresistible desire? Of course, the idea of absolving people (at least in part) of responsibility when they act in the presence of strong desires is recurrent in philosophical literature. Interestingly, however, in recent decades it has often also appeared in legal and forensic psychiatric literature, especially in discussions of addiction and 'personality disorders' involving 'compulsive' behaviour such as kleptomania. The question of the availability of defences based on 'loss of control' - to be invoked with the support of 'expert' medical opinion - has become a controversial theme, which has been central in the debate on the insanity defence.
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