Legal Definition and Related Resources of Irresistible Impulse

Loss of control due to insanity that is so profound that the person cannot stop from committing a crime . under the irresistible impulse test for insanity, a person may avoid criminal responsibility even though capable of distinguishing between right and wrong and fully aware of the nature and quality of his acts, provided the accused establishes that he or she was unable to refrain from acting. Com. v Walzack, 360 A.2d 914, 468 Pa. 210. The accused has to show an impulse to commit a criminal or unlawful act which cannot be resisted or overcome because mental disease has destroyed the freedom of will, the power of self-control and choice of actions. Snider v Smyth, (D.C. Va.) 187 F.Supp. 299. The defense of irresistible impulse is (I available only in certain States of the United States .

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Irresistible Impulse in Historical Law

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Search for legal acronyms and/or abbreviations containing Irresistible Impulse in the Legal Abbreviations and Acronyms Dictionary.

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Mentioned in these terms

Insanity, Legal Insanity.

Irresistible impulse in Law Enforcement

Main Entry: Law Enforcement in the Legal Dictionary. This section provides, in the context of Law Enforcement, a partial definition of irresistible impulse.

Resources

See Also

• Law Enforcement Officer
• Police Work
• Law Enforcement Agency

Further Reading

• irresistible impulse in A Dictionary of Law Enforcement (Oxford University Press)
• irresistible impulse in the Encyclopedia of Law Enforcement
• A Treatise on the Police of the Metropolis