The Party Fight

On the evening of September 8, 1967, the Defendant and his uncle spent the morning and afternoon drinking wine before attending a party at the home of acquaintances in the District of Columbia. During the evening, several fights broke out. In one of them, the Defendant's jaw was injured — he was struck or pushed to the ground. The time of this fight was approximately 10:30 PM. The Defendant left the party. He told his uncle that "some boys had jumped him." The uncle testified that the Defendant "looked like he was out of his mind." Other witnesses saw the Defendant afterward: his mouth was bleeding, his speech was unclear, he was staggering and angry, and he pounded a mailbox with his fist with such force that witnesses were alarmed. The Defendant later returned to the scene. He obtained a pistol and shot and killed one of the partygoers, the victim, who died from his wounds. The Defendant was charged with second-degree murder. At trial, the Defence raised insanity under the then-current Durham-McDonald test, which asked whether the act was the "product" of a mental disease or defect.