Proposed Jury Instruction for Sanity

NOTICE TO COUNSEL AND JUDGES: As provided in the Court's Order accepting the proposed jury instructions for a period of working review, the Court's provisional approval "is for the purpose of refining and testing the application and accuracy of the pattern instructions and does not ensure error-free trials, and their use does not carry a no-reversal guarantee. It is not intended that this provisional acceptance is a final approval of the content of any instruction and each judge may use or refuse any instruction as he or she sees fit[,]" according to law. (emphasis added).

SANITY

__________ INSTRUCTION NO. _____

    The Court instructs the members of the jury that an accused is not responsible for his act if at the time of the commission of the act it was the result of a mental disease or defect causing the accused to lack the capacity either to appreciate the wrongfulness of his act, or to conform his act to the requirements of the law.
    There is a presumption that the accused was sane at the time of the alleged commission of the alleged crime. However, if any evidence was introduced by him/her or by the State fairly raising doubt upon the issue of his/her sanity at that time, the presumption of sanity at that time ceases to exist; and the State then has the burden to establish the sanity of the accused beyond a reasonable doubt and that if the whole proof upon that issue leaves the jury with a reasonable doubt as to the Defendant's sanity at that time, the jury must accord him/her that benefit and acquit him/her.

COMMENT

SANITY

1.     State v. Massey, 178 W.Va. 427, 359 S.E. 2d 865 (1987) Footnote No. 3 citing State v. Grimm, 156 W.Va. 615, 195 S.E. 2d 637 (1973) and also citing State v. Myers, 159 W.Va. 353, 222 S.E. 2d 300 (1976). Syllabus Point 2 sanctions the first paragraph of this instruction. See also State v. Daggett, 167 W.Va. 411, 280 S.E. 2d 545 (1981) for exact language in this instruction.
2.     State v. Milan, 163 W.Va. 752, 260 S.E. 2d 295 (1979). Syllabus Point 2 sanctions the second paragraph of this instruction. State v. Daggett, Supra.