insanity.pdf

Africa 11
episodes of sexual abuse at the hands of another. The physical and
psychological trauma which characterises sexual abuse triggers the
dissociative episode resulting in an altered state of consciousness. He or she
‘blocks out’ the painful episodes and experiences
amnesia for these events. Consequently the person is
unable to relate any of these experiences as they are
inaccessible to conscious memory. Mounting a defence
of sane automatism
In order to mount a defence of sane automatism it must be proven that the
there has been an antecedent build-up such as a period of conflict or dispute
which the person has experienced. The dissociative episode which the person
undergoes must have been caused by some external trigger mechanism For
example, a person a who has been experiencing marital difficulties may be so
overwhelmed by the news that his or her is spouse is filing for divorce that he
or she reacts violently and murders the spouse. Consequently, he or she may
have no conscious memory of this action because of the extreme nature of the
emotional reaction (in this example, rage), which completely overwhelms the
conscious mind and renders him or her incapable of goal-directed action.
Where such a claim is made, the psychologist has to assess whether the
accused experienced a discrete dissociative episode at the time of the murder.
An integral part of this diagnosis is whether the person has amnesia for the
event. This diagnosis is15 difficult to make in that the psychologist relies on
the accused’s version of events, which may not always be reliable. The
assessment as to whether the person has a true absence of memory for that
discrete period is also problematic, given that the clinician again relies on the
accused’s account. On one hand, it may be more plausible that a person
‘blocks out’ memories of situations in which they have
been victimised, while on the other, it is more difficult
to accept such claims made by a person who is the
victimiser. While the question of the veracity of such
claims falls within the ambit of the court, the
psychologist is to a certain extent placed in the position of assessing the
accused’s truthfulness. In essence one has to ask whether it is plausible that
someone who commits a crime triggered by an external stressor is so
overwhelmed by emotion, that he or she has no memory of it.
For example, in S v Pederson [1998] 3 All SA 321, the appellant appealed
against his conviction for the murder of his estranged wife. The appellant
claimed that he had not acted consciously and voluntarily in killing his wife
and that even if the act was voluntary, he had no intention of murdering her.
He claimed that he was under the influence of alcohol and had been angry and
aggressive because his wife was leaving him. There was a history of domestic
violence which culminated in the stabbing of the wife. The appellant claimed
to have no recollection of the incident as he had experienced an acute
catathymic crisis at the time of the murder. The psychological evidence
defined this crisis as a ‘mental storm’ which overwhelmed his mental capacity
such that he was unable to exert control over actions. The Court questioned
whether the Appellant had experienced a true absence of memory for the
incident or whether the amnesia served the purpose of repressing the trauma
caused by the incident. The Court held that for the defence of sane automatism
to succeed, the Appellant had to prove that he had experienced true amnesia
Activity 8.910.
Explain what is meant by the voluntariness
of an act.
Activity 8.1011
Give three examples of psychological
blows which may result in sane automatism