Madness on Trial: John Hinckley Jr. and the Insanity Defense Dan Greenstone

In the first episode of Madness on Trial, the hosts go through the bizarre contents of the hotel room John Hinckley Jr. stayed in the night before he attempted to kill President Reagan, and what they reveal about this troubled man. Then they dig into some of history's strangest and most important insanity defense cases. 
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Who is John Hinckley Jr.?  How did his obsession with Taxi Driver begin, and why didn't anyone in his life intervene more decisively to arrest his spiral? The crew dive deep into John Hinckley's family, background and descent into madness. 
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On the morning of March 30, 1981,  John Hinckley Jr. was planning to travel from Washington, D.C. to New Haven with the intention of murdering Jodie Foster. But when, by chance, Hinckley saw that Reagan was giving a speech that afternoon he packed his guns, and headed over to the Washington Hilton. 
Del Wilber,  the author of the best selling book, Rawhide Down, takes us through this historic day, explaining how the heroics of Secret Service agents and the frantic efforts of Emergency Medicine specialists saved President Reagan's life.  Wilber also makes the case that Reagan's grace and humor that day forged a bond with the country that was never broken. 

We also speak with David Prosperi, White House Assistant Press Secretary, who survived the shooting. Prosperi gives us his eyewitness account of the events that day. 
Email us with questions and comments at madnessontrial@gmail.com

And if you like the show, please leave a rating and review. 
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Travis and Daniel take a pop quiz on which states have banned the insanity defense. Then the crew asks some big questions about the insanity defense. Why do we have it? When did it begin? How has it changed over time? How broadly should it be available to defendants? And what was the law that governed John Hinckley Jr.'s trial. To answer these questions, we have 3  of the country's leading scholars of the insanity defense: forensic psychiatrist Dr. Ken Weiss, and law professors  Michael Perlin and Richard Bonnie. 
We learned a ton and had some laughs too. 
You can email us at madnessontrial@gmail.com
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Criminal defense attorney Harold Hall joins Dan and Travis to talk through the key points  in the John Hinckley Jr. Trial, including Jodie Foster's videotaped testimony, key rulings by the judge, some incredibly awful poetry that was admitted as evidence, and Hinckley's removal from the courtroom for an outburst.  Oh, and for you Daniel-stans out there, Daniel Mokrauer Madden was in Kenya while we recorded this episode and the next one. But fear not; he will back for Episode 7! 

If you enjoy the show, please leave a 5 star review on Apple Podcasts. It's by far the best way to for us to spread the word. 
Email us at Madnessontrial@gmail.com 
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Criminal defense attorney Harold Hall is back! He joins Dan and Travis to talk through the controversial testimony, and surprising background, of prosecution expert witness Park Dietz, the jury deliberations and the verdict, and whether the emerging field of neuro-criminology will  lead to a dystopian future or a more just and humane system. 

And for the Daniel-stans out there, Daniel Mokrauer Madden was in Kenya while we recorded this episode and the next one. But fear not; he will back for Episode 7! 

If you enjoy the show, please leave a 5 star review on Apple Podcasts. It's by far the best way to for us to spread the word. 
Email us at Madnessontrial@gmail.com 
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.