for better or for worse, I think something like 49/50 states offer ngri (not guilty by reason of insanity) and I think all 50 offer 'guilty, but mentally ill.' i am probably wrong about this, but I think the -1- state that doesn't do NGRI, ever, is Iowa (?), mainly because different 'experts' came to wildly different conclusions....im thinking the cheaper co$t of prisons is maybe another factor (call me cynical).

how it plays out has more to do with the culture within a given area than the needs of the defendant. where I live, NGRI cases are a little bit more common than they once were, mainly because what they do is NGRI the case, keep them at what's left of the state hospital till they're stable(ish), then its court supervised treatment for however long the trial judge decides or the plea agreement dictates. by and large, this approach means that NGRI cases don't make the headlines, because its not so much for the mega-felonies (like, say, killing 5 kids), more for cases where someone just slipped thru the cracks, did something felony-level stupid, and (punitive...) treatment makes more sense. I can think of -1- case that made the papers in which a murder case was handled thru NGRI. even with the emphasis on 'recovery,' blah blah blah, I'm thinking that individual may never leave the state hospital.

'guilty, but mentally ill' has been a bust, here where i live. it often means 2x, 3x, the punishment. sometimes, there's the 'factors in mitigation,' with 'mental defect' playing a role. when that happens, my understanding is that a skilled lawyer might be able to get a conviction on a lesser charge (I kinda sorta followed a case in another part of the state...started as -1st degree murder- ... ended as 'voluntary manslaughter,' largely because of the 'mental defect' used as a bargaining chip).

i keep tabs on these things because it interests me...the intersection of society, the law, and psychiatry...and (not supposed to bring these up...) race, gender, and social class.

as for andrea yates... I think she'll probably end up confined to a hospital, indefinitely. i don't think its a good thing....i think she probably could be treated, given a new lease on life after a while...but, hey; the whole "tough on crime" and/or "don't do the crime if you can't do the time!" approach to criminal deviance still has a stranglehold on the US legal system.

a couple cases have made the papers...both female....in other states, where they were confined to state hospitals for crimes of violence against family members, and then they were released, and they killed....family members. oops. :-( just goes to show...."good patients" aren't always "good people."