Neuroanatomy in the Justice System

Abstract

As people, we all have a different understanding of our level of agency and behavior in a situation. While some may believe criminal impulses are situational, and dependent heavily on the environment and less on the individual, others may believe that a person is inherently bad and there is minimal we could do in terms of changing that behavior. Our court system is built for the people by the people: it relies on off evidence and jury interpretation. This diversity in belief makes it difficult to assign a standard to conviction; but what if we could use neuroscience in par with factual evidence to help establish a more concrete idea of defendant agency in a crime? Our criminal justice system should take into consideration neurological disorders when determining the level of guilt of an offender, rather than being dependent on the idea of “blameworthiness” through the lens of human belief. Doing so would allow for a more honed focus on rehabilitation and treatment as opposed to incarceration to prevent future recidivism and create a more beneficial judiciary.