Preview
Identifier
KF 223 .G8 S6 1881
Creation Date
1881
Description
Smith, William R. Assassination and Insanity: Guiteau's Case, Examined and Compared. Washington, D.C.: William R Smith, 1881.
Charles J. Guiteau assassinated U.S. President James A. Garfield in 1881. Guiteau believed he played a major role in Garfield's election victory and thought he should be rewarded with a consulship. The Garfield administration rejected his applications. In response to this, along with a warped feeling of political duty and religious calling, Guiteau shot Garfield, fatally wounding him. At his subsequent murder trial, the defense claimed Guiteau suffered from temporary insanity. Guiteau, however, insisted that while he was legally insane – because God had taken away his free will - he was not medically insane. The prosecution successfully argued against the insanity defense. Guiteau was found guilty and sentenced to death. He was hanged in 1882.