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- Title
#AbolishNCR: A Qualitative Analysis of Social Media Narratives around the Insanity Defense.
- Authors
Goossens, Ilvy; Jordan, Marlee; Nicholls, Tonia
- Abstract
This article presents an analysis of social media posts by laypersons regarding a finding of Not Criminally Responsible on Account of Mental Disorder (NCRMD) for Matthew de Grood after a high-profile trial in 2016 in Canada. From trial to verdict, a total of 4,991 tweets relating to the case were harvested from Twitter. Qualitative content analysis of 365 tweets by laypersons revealed three themes – largely equating the insanity defense to a legal loophole: (1) The case exemplified a misappropriation of the legal defense (e.g., due to privilege, due to the seriousness of the offence); (2) The perception existed that the NCRMD defence is a miscarriage of justice; (3) Many comments reflected a search for answers and justice. These embodied the ABCs of NCRMD: advocating, blaming, and clarifying. A need for public education about the forensic psychiatric system is evident; misconceptions about the insanity defence appeared pervasive. Further research could focus on the efficacy of knowledge translation over new media channels, such as Twitter.
- Subjects
CANADA; INSANITY defense; X Corp.; SOCIAL media; MICROBLOGS; ACTIONS &; defenses (Law); JUDICIAL error; CONTENT analysis; ATTORNEY-client privilege
- Publication
Canadian Journal of Criminology & Criminal Justice, 2021, Vol 63, Issue 2, p46
- ISSN
1707-7753
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.3138/cjccj.2020-0019