Was Mr. Smith Committed The Legal Definition Of Insanity?

In the trial of Mr. Smith, there is no question of whether or not he committed the gruesome murder of Mr. Johnson; the question is in the sanity of Mr. Smith at the time the murder was committed. You may be thinking, “Why on Earth would you think Mr. Smith was sane? He killed a man because his eye was creepy!” While Mr. Smith did kill someone for what seems like an absurd reason, this does not make him insane. The legal definition of insanity is “a mental illness of such a severe nature that a person cannot distinguish fantasy from reality, cannot manage his/her own affairs, or is subject to uncontrollable impulsive behavior.... Could not tell right from wrong or could not control his or her behavior because of severe mental defect or illness.”

Smith was/is capable of managing his own affairs. On page 56, Mr. Smith wrote, “And every night, about midnight, I turned the latch of his door and opened it… I did for seven long nights- every night just at midnight- but I found the eye was always closed; and so it was impossible to do the work…” Mr. Smith displayed consistency in his planned routine of watching Mr. Johnson, and could not carry out his intentions until the conditions were right to kill the man, meaning that he could get what he desired accomplished, but only when he wanted it done, thus proving that he can manage his own affairs. Also on page 56, it is written that Mr. Smith “...went boldly into the chamber, and spoke courageously to him, calling him by name in a hearty tone, and inquiring how he had passed the night. So you see he would have been a very profound old man, indeed, to suspect…” Mr. Smith covered up this plotting with niceties to ensure that Mr. Johnson did not realize his goal and prevent it from happening, thus smartly providing an insurance policy for himself to secure his success. Page 59 tells of Mr. Smith carrying out his goals; it reads, “In an instant I dragged him to the floor, and pulled the heavy bed over him.” This proves that Mr. Smith could plan and successfully carry out a murder, proving that he was capable of handling himself and fulfilling his aspirations, but he could also control his behavior and knew when to restrict