Perr I N
Am J Psychiatry. 1983 Jul;140(7):873-4. doi: 10.1176/ajp.140.7.873.
The M'Naghten case and the Hinckley matter are in some ways remarkably similar. The attempted assassination of a ruling figure, the public discomfort with the insanity defense, and problems in the application of the legal rules characterized both. An explosion of media criticism occurred in 1843, as it did in 1982. The English ultimately handled the M'Naghten case in a dispassionate manner that determined Anglo-American law for more than a century and provided the basic law by which Hinckley was tried. Fears expressed in 1843 were never realized; the final chapters of the Hinckley case remain to be written.
麦克诺顿案和欣克利事件在某些方面极为相似。两者都涉及企图暗杀一名统治人物、公众对精神错乱抗辩的不满以及法律规则适用方面的问题。1843年出现了媒体批评的热潮，1982年亦是如此。英国人最终以冷静的方式处理了麦克诺顿案，这一处理方式在一个多世纪里决定了英美法系，并为审判欣克利提供了基本法律依据。1843年所表达的担忧从未成为现实；欣克利案的最终篇章仍有待书写。
