By Dr David Laing Dawson
Reading the news reports of the ongoing Minassian trial I realize how much we humans fall back to centuries old, sometimes outdated, even meaningless concepts, when struggling to understand and decide a course of action.
At the time of the M’Naghten trial in 1843 the wording and concepts used to formulate a category of bad behaviour for which a person could and should not be held responsible (and punished) drew naturally from the world view of the time, Judeo Christian principles of the time, and the prevailing understanding of human behaviour of the time, within the specific context of 1843 England.
M’Naghten was found to suffer from “acute insanity” for which, at the time, and until the 1950’s, there was no effective treatment. His symptoms were that of Schizophrenia, or more specifically, of acute paranoid schizophrenia. Today we have effective treatments for this illness, and specific ways of monitoring the illness and compliance with treatment.
There is no doubt Alek Minassian did commit this particularly horrific act. And now great amounts of money are being spent, and hours and hours of testimony and argument fill the air as we struggle with his “capacity to distinguish right from wrong”, evidence of a “conscience and a moment of moral struggle”, or not. All of course in service to the question “Should this man be punished?”. And, from what I am reading, the conceptual underpinnings of the legal arguments have not changed since the early 19th century, and have little to do with what we now understand are the determinants of individual and group behaviour. (I do not mean to imply that we have solved the puzzle, just that we have come a long way since 1843)
A combination of Minassian’s Autism, his social isolation, his sense of social failure, plus the depth of his submersion in the nasty online subcultures of Incel and other extremist sites, resulted, tragically, in the deaths of 10 people and injury to 16 others.
While today we do have an effective treatment for M’Naghten’s condition, we do not have specific, effective, and easily monitored treatment for any of the three elements contributing to Minassian’s Van Attack (autism/social isolation-failure, online cults).
Today one of the newspaper reports was of Minassian saying something like, “Honestly, I don’t think I did have a mental illness at the time.” Now what fascinates me about this comment is that it is exactly what I would expect. Minassian does not accurately read the context, the social context of his situation, and the goals and intentions of those around him. He responds as if he is having this discussion over a coffee with a friend. This is autism.
But if we are going to spend incredible amounts of money asking and debating complex questions, why not ask pertinent questions?
1. Do we have effective and easily monitored tools (treatment) that will reduce the chances of Minassian re-offending to nil, short of some form of incarceration and life time surveillance? The answer is no.
2. Would this legal process, plus a finding of guilt and a severe punishment for Minassian, deter others in the future? Again, the answer is no. In fact, with these kinds of crime, the notoriety and the press and social media exposure are more apt to increase the likelihood of someone else doing the same.
3. Can our understanding of Minassian and the three main elements underlying his crime help us in any way to prevent such actions by others in the future.
And here the answer is yes. Or at least possibly.
The first: His autism: The treatment: early diagnosis, early remediation, medical treatment as needed, socialization and corrective experiences as thoroughly as possible, and continuing these well into adulthood. We all need to fit in somehow.
Social isolation: This plays a major role in coming to these kinds of conclusions and formulations in Alek’s mind/brain. Ordinarily, such, essentially delusional ideas, forming to explain ones inadequacies and failures, are quickly countered by real social experiences in face to face real life. We all need at least one real friend (or family member) who will tell us when we are full of shit, or blaming the wrong people. (Surely the guy who took an automatic weapon to a pizza parlor to root out Hilary Clinton’s pedophile ring, would not have done so had he shared his plans with his buddies down at the local. Or maybe I am over-estimating the intelligence of the guys down at the local)
Online Cults: Now we are treading in very new and complex territory. Just how much should the internet and social media be policed? All these particular kinds of sites and forums are very dangerous for socially isolated men and women searching for meaning, connection, purpose and understanding – especially if they are unable to find these meanings, structures, and purpose in the real world.
But, in a way, the Incel culture is to women, all women, what an anti-semitic, holocaust denying website is to Jews. And likely to set a Minassian, somewhere, sometime, on a path of violence.