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The Big Loopholes In "Guilty Except For Insanity"

A legislative proposal would boost rates and put some public defenders on state staff to bolster their ranks. More are sorely needed to represent hundreds of people facing criminal charges who can’t afford a lawyer.
Brian Turner
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via Flickr
A legislative proposal would boost rates and put some public defenders on state staff to bolster their ranks. More are sorely needed to represent hundreds of people facing criminal charges who can’t afford a lawyer.

Charles Longjaw had already admitted to a killing in Oregon and a rape in Washington.  Yet he was released from custody in 2015, and charged with committing another murder the next year. 

The situation comes back to the law under which he was found "guilty except for insanity."  GEI verdicts, as they are known, can lead to offenders being released despite predictions of danger. 

The non-profit news organization ProPublica uncovered issues with the law in a joint project with the Malheur Enterprise.  Jayme Fraser reported the stories, and is our guest. 

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Geoffrey Riley is a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism and has hosted the Jefferson Exchange on JPR since 2009. He's been a broadcaster in the Rogue Valley for more than 35 years, working in both television and radio.
April Ehrlich is an editor and reporter at Oregon Public Broadcasting. Prior to joining OPB, she was a news host and regional reporter at Jefferson Public Radio.