Argumentative Essay: The Insanity Defense

The insanity defense has been around since 1581, but the most people are familiar with the M’Naghten Rule, which was affirmed in the nineteenth century. Since then, many more rules and tests have been implemented to prove the sanity level of the defendant. There are lots of mixed opinions about the insanity defense and the most common argument is, “How do you know it is real?” Sure, in some cases it is obvious if they are lying or if they do suffer from a mental illness, but in other cases there can be doubt. In Ralph Tortorici’s case, it was clear that he suffered from a mental illness and there was evidence to prove that he had delusions, but when Lee Harvey Oswald, shot and killed President John F. Kennedy and tried to claim insanity, the