I am a college student who went to a friend’s party last month. I have never drunk, smoked, or taken drugs. At the party I drank some punch and ate some brownies. The police told me that on the way home, I started hallucinating due to the LSD someone had purposely placed in the punch. My hallucination consisted of seeing three Martians who I thought had landed on the planet to kill the President. Due to my drug-induced state, I’m told I ran over the aliens (innocent people) with my car and killed them. I woke up without any memory of these events. The doctors tell me I’ll be fine although I do run the risk of occasional flashbacks. The person who put the LSD in the punch has been arrested.  I was charged with negligent homicide and my trial begins next week.

Instructions

Answer the following in a half-page paper:

1. You are hired by the defendant to be an expert witness to testify in the trial of this college student. How does a psychologist explain to the jury the mental capacity of someone under the influence of drugs who commits a crime? Explain your answer.
2. Use at least one academic resource to back up your explanation.