The shameless exhibition of insanity successfully pushed as a defense of the crime of murder, followed by the indignant efforts of the accused to be adjudged sane so soon as his insanity plea had served its purpose, may well make the alienist at least cautiously critical of such a line of defense. That there are points, however, where penology and psychiatry are tangent, can hardly be gainsaid. Our social organization is still defective and certain classes are not yet clearly recognized, and so, of course, not provided for. But, it seems to me, our duty lies in the direction of considering these cases from the standpoint of our defective social scheme. It were indeed convenient if the” demi-fous “and” demiresponsables” could be assigned to their proper institutions, when recognized. Whether the habitual criminal be such a one may be another story. The writer was called by his anxious sisters, who wished him declared insane because facing a criminal charge, to examine one, S. C., et. 22, who never had any occupation, save, as the police say, he has always been a “cheap thief.” He is an inveterate smoker of cigarettes; he is about 5 feet 6 inches in height and weighs about 145 pounds, thin-lipped and of shifty looks. His sisters say that his mother was a (left) hemiplegic (and hysterical) for five years before his birth. His family history is otherwise negative. He was an ordinarily healthy baby, and later attended the public school, to the third grade, when he ran away. That his police record began at tender years is evidenced by the following, showing no less than 41 arrests between the ages of 5 and 22 for charges from simple larceny to robbery:
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Jan 1, 1932
