Northgate
Baptist Church
Northgate
Baptist Church
Psychiatric Mis-Interpretations Of Motives
I. Crimes of "Passion"
A. Sometimes a Seemingly Responsible Person appears to lose control and commits an isolated, unplanned crime against someone he knows.
1. Referred to as crimes of passion, these often occur within families as when, In The Heat of An Argument, a husband grabs a meat cleaver and murders his wife.
2. Such an individual has not been a killer in the past and according to statistics, is unlikely to kill again.
3. The perpetrator may have had a Reputation As A Loyal Family Man, a reliable Provider, and a Pillar of the community.
B. However, Only Immediate Members of his household who intimately know the man can look behind the public image to glean some understanding of the crime.
C. Both the crime of passion and the calculated, cold-blooded murder by a criminal are products of A Mentality With Similar Features.
1. He has much in common with the criminal in the way he views himself and deals with the world.
2. Boasting, Inflexible, and Impatient, he demands that others do what he wants.
3. He flares up whenever someone criticizes or disagrees with him.
4. Instead of coping with unpleasant situations, he adds more problems By His Manner of Reacting.
5. When frustrated or disappointed, he is Quick To Blame others and fly into a fury.
6. The homicide that he commits may be preceded by a Long Series of Threats or Assaults that were hushed up within the family.
D. When the homicide is finally committed, it is by a man to whom Violence Was No Stranger.
II. "Senseless" Crimes
A. The common motive behind many crimes that appear senseless is "Kicks" --- The Thrill Of Doing The Forbidden.
1. The excitement in thinking about crime.
2. Bragging about crime.
3. Executing the crime.
4. Making the getaway.
5. Celebrating the triumph.
B. Even if the offender is caught, there is excitement in --- Dealing with the police.
1. Trying to beat the rap.
2. In receiving notoriety.
3. The trial proceedings itself.
III. The "Impulse Disorder" Crime
A. "Kleptomaniac" is a psychiatric term for a person suffering from "An Uncontrollable Impulse To Steal."
(However, what is Habitual is not necessarily Compulsive and beyond one's control.)
B. "Kleptomaniacs" and "Pyromaniacs" are simply people who Enjoy Stealing or Setting Fires.
1. Behind such acts is a person who Deliberates ----- and Acts with knowledge of possible consequences.
2. When held accountable, the criminal does his best to convince others that he is a victim (sick).
C. These "Terms" are mere "Excuses" for more crime.
IV. Insanity
A. The "Son of Sam" David Berkowitz said that the devil had talked to him through his dog and commanded him to kill.
Later The Washington Post carried his acknowledgment that he had been feigning mental illness:
"There were no real demons, no talking dogs, no satanic henchmen," Berkowitz said. "I made it all up via my wild imagination so as to find some form of justification for my criminal acts against society."
B. Many Resort To The Insanity Defense in order to beat the rap
--- Psychiatric hospitalization gives the criminal an Excuse For More Crime.
C. Even if it can be ascertained that the person was mentally ill when he committed the crime, it does not necessarily follow that he was Powerless To Act other than he did.
D. Criminals showing signs of psychosis are often far too Confused and Disoriented to scheme and execute crimes that require an Alert and Precise mind.
IV. What About Jails? --- Schools of Crime?
A. Branding correctional institutions as schools for crime with the Implication that People Are Turned Into Something That They Weren't Before is very Inaccurate and Misleading.
1. He is not a hapless victim who is corrupted by fellow inmates.
2. He has made choices in the past and continues to make choices.
B. It is true, that in prison a criminal Expands His Associations and finds Support For His Anti-Social Patterns of thought and behavior.
1. He hears New Ideas for crime in prison.
2. However, it is Still His Choice to accept or reject these ideas.
C. Most Criminals Do Learn From Experience, but it is not what society wants them to learn --- He learns How To Be A Better Criminal.
D. It has been learned that neither years of confinement nor the process of aging will significantly alter his personality.
A Search For The Truth
