{"data":{"id":"us/18-u.s.c.-17","jurisdiction":"us","citation":"18 U.S.C. § 17","heading":"Insanity defense","body":"(a) Affirmative Defense.—It is an affirmative defense to a prosecution under any Federal statute that, at the time of the commission of the acts constituting the offense, the defendant, as a result of a severe mental disease or defect, was unable to appreciate the nature and quality or the wrongfulness of his acts. Mental disease or defect does not otherwise constitute a defense. (b) Burden of Proof.—The defendant has the burden of proving the defense of insanity by clear and convincing evidence.","path":["Title 18—CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE","CHAPTER 1—GENERAL PROVISIONS"],"source_url":"https://uscode.house.gov/download/releasepoints/us/pl/119/103/xml_usc18@119-103.zip","current_through":"Public Law 119-103 (09/02/2026)","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-10T05:56:53Z","sha256":"63af4d8ecc5fb9215e54489dcef09568d5790b7bc4382bd0796502ca1f57e9bb","source_id":"us","stale":false,"prev":"us/18-u.s.c.-16","next":"us/18-u.s.c.-18"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}