Violence and the epilepsy defense

The essence of the epilepsy defense is the argument that a crime was committed as a result of the perpetrator having epilepsy, and thus that he or she should not be held responsible for a violent crime. Neurologists are frequently asked to pass judgment regarding whether an alleged act may have been the result of an epileptic condition; therefore, neurologists should be informed as to what criteria should be used to decide if a given act was, or could have been, the result of an epileptic seizure. This article discusses three cases where epilepsy is used as the defense argument. In addition, this article reviews types of epileptic seizures, syncopal events, and pseudoseizures.