Free in Kentucky: The Insanity Defense: Stacy Schuler Might Be Craz...

Free in Kentucky: The Insanity Defense: Stacy Schuler Might Be Craz...: Stacy Schuler has officially been convicted of having sex with students. More specifically, the extremely popular Ohio high school gym teac...

The Insanity Defense: Stacy Schuler Might Be Crazy. But Not Crazy Enough.

Stacy Schuler has officially been convicted of having sex with students.  More specifically, the extremely popular Ohio high school gym teacher has been convicted of 16 felony counts of sexual battery (and 3 misdemeanor counts of giving booze to minors) after Judge Robert Peeler rejected her insanity defense.  The Judge said he would refuse to take the “magnificent leap” that would be required to believe that Schuler did not know that her actions were wrong.

Even though the boys with whom she coupled are of age in Ohio, it is still illegal for a teacher to have sex with a student.  From what I gather, the boys were all 17 or older.  There were 5 of them, by the way.  Schuler will now have to register as a sex offender for life.

Rather than muse about the degree of moral gray area involved whenever a young female teacher has sex with a consenting “not quite adult, but old enough” football player(s), or the contrast of circumstances if Schuler had been an older man who had sex with a 17 year old cheerleader, today’s blog post will concentrate on Schuler’s insanity defense and Kentucky’s equivalent. 

Schuler wanted the court to accept the proposition that a combination of mental disorders, Zoloft, booze, a vegan diet, and irritable bowel syndrome rendered her unable to tell the difference between right and wrong.

See.  I don’t even have to interject any snide comment or make a joke.  This stuff just writes itself.

Let’s take a look at the Kentucky law on insanity defense and see how Schuler’s case would be analyzed here in the Bluegrass State.  “Insanity” is the slang term for the defense, and in Kentucky, we use the terms “Mental Illness or Retardation.”  KRS 504.020 governs the defense of Mental Illness or Retardation, and it reads in pertinent part:

(1) A person is not responsible for criminal conduct if at the time of such conduct, as a result of mental illness or retardation, he lacks substantial capacity either to appreciate the criminality of his conduct or to conform his conduct to the requirements of law.

Let’s break it down like James Brown and see how the law would or would not apply to Schuler.  Obviously the “criminal conduct” to which the statute refers would include each time she had sex with a student.  Each act is a separate instance of criminal conduct.  So, in order to simplify this, let’s just assume she only had sex with one student, one time.  In Schuler’s case, she is not claiming retardation, so we’ll be using the “mental illness” language.  The trier of fact (be it judge or jury) must decide whether, at the time she had sex with a student, Schuler had a mental illness.  If she did have a mental illness, the trier of fact has to decide whether Schuler had the ability to (1) understand that what she was doing was illegal, or (2) conform her conduct to the law.  If the trier of fact decides that Schuler didn’t understand what she was doing was illegal, or that didn’t have enough control over herself to make herself conform to the law, then Schuler is NOT responsible for her criminal conduct.  

In this particular case, the Judge considered evidence that Schuler invited these boys over to her home, provided them with alcohol and marijuana, gave them back rubs and even some testimony from one of the boys that indicated she was planning an insanity defense as she was seducing the boys.  Therefore, he declined to accept her insanity defense.

On a side note, the Defense for Schuler brought up some evidence concerning “black outs” which can come from mixing Zoloft with a lot of alcohol.  This is a complicated area which I will leave for another day.  However, I do want to let you know that alcohol intoxication can, in certain circumstances, be a defense to a crime.  If you have a case and you have mental illness, retardation, or if you believe you may have an alcohol intoxication defense, talk to your lawyer about the defense options you may have.

Sex crimes are very serious.  Often, they can be felonies.  A conviction for certain sex crimes can require lifelong registration as a sex offender.  If you have been charged with rape, sexual assault, or unlawful transaction with a minor in Louisville, Lexington, Frankfort, Elizabethtown, or the surrounding areas, call 502.618.4949 and speak with an experienced Louisville sex crimes lawyer today.  The initial consultation is free.

Results.  As fast as the law will allow.


Questions answered in this blog post: Explain Stacy Schuler's insanity defense; what is the insanity defense in Kentucky; how can someone plea insanity for a crime; can intoxication be a defense to a crime; why did the Judge reject Stacy Schuler's insanity plea; how can I find a good Louisville sex crime lawyer; how can I find a good Louisville sexual assault lawyer; how can I find a good Louisville rape lawyer; how much time did Stacy Schuler get; what is the standard for a Kentucky defense of Mental Illness or Retardation?

Free in Kentucky: Bathtub Molly: Designer Drugs and the Legality The...

Free in Kentucky: Bathtub Molly: Designer Drugs and the Legality The...: Meow Meow is not your friend. Neither is any other designer drug that someone engineers, mixes up in a juiced-up home chemistry set and se...

Bathtub Molly: Designer Drugs and the Legality Thereof

Meow Meow is not your friend.  Neither is any other designer drug that someone engineers, mixes up in a juiced-up home chemistry set and sells on the internet. 

This is going to sound absurd and/or repulsive to a lot of you.  Just bear with me.  You may at least find this interesting.  Kind of like watching a show about cannibalism on the History Channel.  You know you aren’t ever going to dabble in the subject, but you can’t stop watching.

Every once in a while someone (often a teenager with too much chemistry knowledge and not enough sense) manufactures a new drug that cannot be detected by existing drug tests.  The drug becomes popular, it may or may not kill a few people, and then states (and possibly the federal government) begin to ban it.  Some are extremely dangerous and some are relatively benign.  Occasionally, a drug will reach a level of…um…legitimacy(?), I suppose – such that the designer drug is packaged for resale and distributed freely on the open market. 

Take “Spice” for example.  “Spice” is the trademarked name of a company that distributed a synthetic cannabinoid (although the name “Spice” has been generalized to the extent that people use it to refer to all synthetic cannabis products, much like “Band-Aid” or “Kleenex”).  This synthetic cannabis product was packaged in a little shiny pouch with a flashy logo, and was sold in gas stations until banned Nationwide in March of 2011.  I haven’t found any research that suggests that Spice causes any more negative side effects than actual pot (except that some research suggests that it may make people nauseous) but the concern is that a lot of research just doesn’t exist.  The Associated Press indicated earlier this year that no official studies have been conducted on Spice’s effects on humans.

And that’s the problem.  We really have no idea what the short or long-term consequences of ingesting these drugs are, or will be.  People are just buying these drugs off the internet, or from some guy down the street and shoving them into their body, with no idea of what sort of harm might befall them.  If you are wondering why people wouldn’t weigh the possible consequences of drug use against the desire to get a little buzz, you are injecting a level of logic that simply isn’t present when people buy designer drugs.

More recently, “bath salts” have been the designer drug of choice.  The scientific name for the synthetic stimulant is mephedrone or methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV).  It comes in tablet or powder forms and users swallow, snort, or inject the drug into their bloodstream. The reported effects of mephedrone are very similar to those caused by cocaine and MDMA.  According to the DEA’s Drug and Chemical Evaluation of methylenedioxypyrovalerone, that means the drug causes feelings of empathy, stimulation, alertness, euphoria, and awareness of senses.  On the negative side, it can cause tachycardia, hypertension, vasoconstriction, and sweating.  MDPV has also been reported to cause intense, prolonged panic attacks in users.  Repeat users have reported bouts of psychosis and a craving or a strong desire or urge to use again. 

Users have been able to get the drug through internet purchases, or from street pharmacists.  The "street names" for mephedrone or MDPV bath salts are numerous.  They include but are not limited to Meow Meow, Kat, White Knight,  White Rush, Ivory Snow, Vanilla Sky, Plant Fertilizer, Energy-1, and Arctic Blast.*  

In 2011, the CDC conducted the first public health investigation of emergency room cases resulting from the use of bath salts.  During a 4-month period in Michigan, 35 patients who had inhaled, injected, or ingested bath salts visited emergency rooms. Of these 35 patients, 17 were hospitalized and one was dead upon arrival.  Due to the increase in emergency room visits by people overdosing on bath salts, the DEA moved to make methylenedioxypyrovalerone, mephedrone, and methylone illegal.  

As of October 21, 2011, MDPV, its salts, isomers, and salts of isomers have been temporarily controlled in schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act.  So the point of all of this is that Meow Meow is now illegal, no matter where you are in the United States.  Also, it might be a bad idea to ingest it.

Drug charges are serious.  If you have been charged with a drug crime in Louisville, Lexington, Frankfort, Elizabethtown, or the surrounding areas, call the experienced drug charge lawyer Greg Simms.  The initial consultation is free, so call 502.473.6464 today.

Individual Attention.  Extraordinary Results.

See WWW.LOUISVILLEFIRM.COM

*Not to be confused with the frozen treat formerly available at Tommy’s Burger Palace in Lebanon, Kentucky.


Questions answered in this blog post:  What is meow meow; what are bath salts; what are bath salts drug; are bath salts legal in Kentucky; where could I get a delicious frozen "Blizzard"-like treat in central Kentucky around 1997; what are designer drugs; what is spice; what is the spice drug; where can I buy spice in Louisville; where can I buy spice drug in Louisville; what is fake marijuana in Kentucky; is fake marijuana legal in Kentucky; what drugs can't be detected in drug tests; which drugs are not detectable; DEA information on bath salts; how can I find a good Louisville drug charge lawyer; how can I find a good Louisville marijuana charge lawyer; what is MDPV; what are the negative effects of bath salts?

Free in Kentucky: The Reason Men HAVE to Watch Football on Sunday: I...

Free in Kentucky: The Reason Men HAVE to Watch Football on Sunday: I...: Yeah, it's kind of funny and then it's kind of not. There are a slew of exceptions (one particularly religious in nature) to the law. But ...

The Reason Men HAVE to Watch Football on Sunday: It is Illegal to Work on Sunday in Kentucky.

Yeah, it's kind of funny and then it's kind of not.

There are a slew of exceptions (one particularly religious in nature) to the law.  But the law in Kentucky states that you are not to work on Sunday.  The religious nature of the law would almost certainly lead to its being declared Unconstitutional as a violation of the Establishment Clause (as discussed in the previous blog post "Boozy Like a Sunday Morning" which addressed alcohol sales on Sunday).

Anyway, the law states:

KRS 436.160   Working on Sunday  -- Work of necessity or charity, athletic games and certain businesses and employers excluded -- Penalty.

(1) Any person who works on Sunday at his own or at any other occupation or employs any other person, in labor or other business, whether for profit or amusement, unless his work or the employment of others is in the course of ordinary household duties, work of necessity or charity or work required in the maintenance or operation of a public service or public utility plant or system, shall be fined not less than two dollars ($2) nor more than fifty dollars ($50). The employment of every person employed in violation of this subsection shall be deemed a separate offense.

(2) Persons who are members of a religious society which observes as a Sabbath any other day in the week than Sunday shall not be liable to the penalty prescribed in subsection (1) of this section, if they observe as a Sabbath one (1) day in each seven (7).

(3) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to amateur sports, athletic games, or operation of grocery stores whose principal business is the sale of groceries and related food items, drug stores whose principal business is the sale of drugs and related drug items, gift shops, souvenir shops, fishing tackle shops and bait shops, moving picture shows, chautauquas,* filling stations, or opera.

(4) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to employers using continuous work scheduling provided that such scheduling permits at least one (1) day of rest each calendar week for each employee.

I'm just going to end it here.  This law really burns my toast, so I'm not even going to talk about why it is almost certainly unenforceable.  Feel free to call me and ask about it if you have more questions.

*This is an "educational arts fair/exhibition" type of thing.  And an airline.  I'm assuming both would be excluded from the application of subsection (1).

Free in Kentucky: Running From the Police is Not Always as Fun as it...

Free in Kentucky: Running From the Police is Not Always as Fun as it...: In the news this week is a fella by the name of Morris Matthews. And I don’t know if he did anything illegal or not, but you have to expect...