Also known as: losses of control · loss of self-control
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An inability to restrain one's actions or refrain from conduct due to mental illness. Under the traditional M'Naghten test this condition alone supplies no defense to criminal liability even when the defendant proves a disease of the mind.
Lars Lindstrom suffered from schizophrenia that produced auditory commands to assault a neighbor. He proved the disease caused a complete inability to refrain from the attack. The court held that this loss of control supplied no acquittal because the M'Naghten test requires only a defect of reason preventing knowledge of the act's wrongfulness.
Lily Lopez knew she had epilepsy yet drove to work. A seizure caused her car to cross the centerline and strike a pedestrian. The prosecution established that her prior knowledge of the condition made the loss of vehicle control foreseeable, supporting a reckless-driving conviction despite the involuntary nature of the blackout.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Luke Latham spent eighteen months in prolonged isolation. Expert testimony showed the confinement produced paranoia and hallucinations that eroded his ability to maintain behavioral control. The dissent cited these documented psychological harms as evidence that extended solitary confinement can induce loss of control over impulses and cognition.
Lillian Locke faced a terminal disease that would soon strip her of the ability to swallow, speak, or control basic bodily functions. She sought medication to hasten death while still competent. The Court noted that such impending loss of control over physical and mental faculties forms part of the factual backdrop for debates over assisted suicide.
Layla Lane was arrested for public intoxication after repeated episodes in which alcohol rendered her unable to control her movements or remain upright. The defense argued the condition was a disease that produced involuntary loss of control. The Court held that the Eighth Amendment does not bar criminal punishment for the resulting public conduct.
No. The traditional M'Naghten test requires a defect of reason that prevents the defendant from knowing the nature and quality of the act or that the act is wrong. Inability to control behavior caused by mental illness is irrelevant and supplies no defense.
Supporting sources
The UK statute replaces provocation with a partial defense requiring that the killing resulted from loss of self-control triggered by a qualifying event, judged against a person of the defendant's sex and age with normal tolerance and self-restraint. The defense is no longer limited to sudden loss of temper provoked by words or conduct.
Supporting sources
Courts weigh the length of time the owner is deprived of the chattel when deciding whether the interference is serious enough to require payment of full value. Prolonged dominion inconsistent with the owner's rights supports conversion rather than mere trespass to chattels.
Supporting sources
…us. For many, the last days will be spent in physical pain and perhaps the despair that accompanies physical deterioration and a loss of control of basic bodily and mental functions. Some will seek medication to alleviate that pain and other symptoms. The Court frames the issue in Washington v. Glucksberg as whether the Due…