Inner-city Post-traumatic Stress Disorder

Abstract

For the first time, psychiatrists have explicitly recognized the connection between urban violence and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), in the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV). Using the new DSM-IV definition, this article reexamines the use of the PTSD insanity defense in inner-city criminal cases. After investigating the extent to which inner-city defendants meet the criteria of PTSD, the author outlines how the legal system has applied the PTSD insanity defense in criminal cases and explores the policy implications of those defenses. The author concludes that although many inner-city defendants can meet the medical and psychological criteria of PTSD, the legal system should not encourage such defenses. Instead, the author advocates using knowledge about inner-city PTSD to design creative crime-prevention strategies.