Patients rarely deemed unfit to plead, says expert

PATIENTS held under the Mental Health Act are rarely deemed “unfit to plead” in a criminal trial, an expert said yesterday.

And psychologists assessing people facing criminal charges are “acutely aware of the issue of faking”.

Professor Nigel Eastman said it is more usual during trials for either a judge or jury to decide on a person’s mental state at the time of the alleged offence. This is known in legal circles as the “mad or bad” argument.