State ex rel. Thompson v. Snell

Citations

• 46 Wash. 327
• 89 P. 931
• 1907 Wash. LEXIS 617

Syllabus

<p>Insane Persons — Commitment—Acquittal on Ground of Insanity — Statutes—Application. The general statute, Bal. Code, § 2660, providing for inquisitions of insanity, has no application to one acquitted of murder on the ground of insanity; since such case is covered by a special act, Bal. Code, § 6959, requiring the commitment of such person, if dangerous to be at large, which provision is mandatory; and since an insane condition once adjudicated, is presumed to continue until the contrary is shown.</p> <p>Statutes — Repeal—Reenactment. The repeal in 1873, of an earlier act, is immaterial where the earlier act was reenacted in'1881.</p> <p>Insane Persons — -Acquittal of Crime on Ground of Insanity— Imprisonment — Constitutional Law — Due Process of Law — Presumptions. One accused of murder, who submits a plea of insanity to trial by jury and is found not guilty by reason of insanity, may be committed to prison if found manifestly dangerous, conformably to Bal. Code, § 6959, and is not deprived of his liberty without due process of law where he does not allege a restoration of sanity; since he was duly accorded a fair trial, and the presumption of insanity once found, continues; and since the law does not prevent a judicial investigation as to restored sanity.</p> <p>Same — Imprisonment — Public Policy. The commitment to a jail or penitentiary of one acquitted of murder on the ground of insanity, if manifestly dangerous, is not contrary to public policy or the humane spirit of the laws dealing with the insane.</p> <p>Same — Dangerous Character — Evidence op — Conclusiveness. Acquittal on the ground of insanity is conclusive that defendant is insane, and the fact that defendant killed a man, is conclusive that he is “manifestly dangerous,” in the absence of clear evidence that his mental condition has undergone a radical change.</p> <p>Same — Prisons—What Constitutes. Bal. Code, § 6959, providing for the commitment to “prison” of dangerous persons acquitted of crime o