The Trial of John Thomas Straffen

mind. In fact Straffen, after his escape, when charged with a third murder in identical circumstances, was found fit to plead, although all six medical witnesses, all with expert knowledge in the fields of psychiatry and delinquency agreed that he was a feeble-minded mental defective. None the less the legal authorities found in this case that mental defect could not be regarded as an excuse for murder and that the accused was responsible for his actions. Tacit evidence of a contrary view was provided by the subsequent reprieve by the Home Secretary. There is a good deal of evidence therefore that it is not only the public who are confused on the subject of mental deficiency but also the medical and legal experts who are unable to find a satisfactory solution of the problems raised in Straffen's case. The editors of the volume on the trial, Dr. Fairfield and Mr. Fulbrook, very sensibly put forward a plea for the use of the Scottish legal form of "diminished responsibility" in such cases. A far more important practical difficulty and source of confusion is, however, not touched upon in detail by these writers.