In 1857 Abraham Lincoln was the prosecuting attorney in a DeWitt County murder and his good friend, Leonard Swett was the defending attorney. It isn't Abraham Lincoln's involvement that interests me as much as the testimony of the doctors who claimed to be experts in insanity. (I would also note that the case was tried in the McLean County Court on a change of venue.)
It seems that every week or month there was some person in McLean County who was declared to be insane. The Pantagraph announcements reported none of the underlying facts that would give us an idea of what sort of behavior would cause you to be committed in an insane asylum. Which makes me curious -- just what behavior could get you locked up in the insane asylum??
Isaac Wyant was on trial for the murder of Ason Rusk, a DeWitt County farmer. The dispute between the two men seemed to be about a parcel of land (the Pantagraph was unsure of the underlying dispute). That dispute led to an "affray" on the Clinton road to which several men were witnesses. (This was an uncommonly busy road!) Ason Rusk had asked to speak to Wyant apart from the other men and began an argument. During the argument Rusk pulled a gun and fired at Wyant, hitting him in the arm. Although Rusk claimed that Wyant drew a knife on him, and the men looked for a knife after the fight, no knife was ever found.
Wyant's arm was amputated, almost immediately, as a result of this shooting. Several friends nursed him and cared for him after the surgery and testified as to how his personality had changed after the shooting and amputation. Wyant was fearful of Rusk returning and murdering him, when before he had been fearful of nothing. Wyant also complained of the doctors giving him enough medicine (chloroform) to kill an elephant during the operation. He had phantom pains from the arm and sensations of his fingernails falling off. He demanded that the arm be disinterred and when it was, the fingernails were coming off the fingers. His friends also testified that he picked at his head and face.
The span of time between the loss of Wyant's arm and the murder of Rusk in the DeWitt County Clerk's office was never clearly stated in the Pantagraph, but in the intervening time Wyant lived in Indiana for an unspecified period. On the murder date, Wyant simply entered the clerk's office and shot Rusk in the head and in the side without a word and continued shooting after Rusk had fallen. A witness in the office testified:
I caught defendant and told him he could shoot no more there; shot three times; asked me if I took it up; I said no, but he could shoot no more there; there had been shooting enough; nothing passed between between defendant and Rusk before shooting.
The Pantagraph's style of reporting the testimony is not verbatim, but conveys the meaning. Wyant came in to the clerk's office with guns blazing and this calm and collected bystander remonstrated with him while he was shooting. Wyant was armed with two guns and his victim was armed with two hand guns as well. (So much for the efficacy of carrying side arms and the possibility of defending oneself.)
Testimony during the trial pointed to Wyant's behavior prior to the crime that tended to prove he was insane. Wyant had been arrested for an assault on another DeWitt County man, and on his arrest, he assaulted one of the arresting officers with an axe -- showing that his violent tendencies did not all stem from his misfortune. After the amputation it seemed he would tell anyone who would listen that he craved revenge for the loss of his arm.
The defense of Wyant was handled by Leonard Swett and William W. Orme. Their defense was insanity, which was a novel defense at the time. Their experts pointed to different parts of the witness testimony that indicated to them that Wyant was insane:
1. His change in personality: Before the amputation of his arm, Wyant was said to be a very brave and courageous man who offered face down an angry mob at a tent revival in support of the minister, but after the amputation he was very afraid and apprehensive.
2. His physical reactions: He was constipated, he vomited after the shooting and he picked at his face and hair in a compulsive manner.
3. His mental confusion: Wyant accused his sister of being the one who shot his arm off.
4. His father had been insane: Although Wyant's father was dead, and the doctor had no ability to confirm the father's insanity.
5. The use of large amounts chloroform during the amputation: Dr. McFarland referenced a study which he had performed using either ether or chloroform ( he could not remember which!) that indicated to him chloroform (or ether) would have an effect upon the mind of an otherwise sane person, but not an insane person.
On such flimsy and unsubstantiated evidence a person could be declared insane! The leading expert could not even remember if the study he had participated in had used chloroform or ether.
Closing arguments took up fully two days! Lincoln's closing arguments for a guilty verdict ran from 1 in the afternoon until 6 in the evening. The jury convened after Lincoln's arguments and by 1 a m the verdict of "not guilty by reason of insanity" was given. Wyant was consigned to the State Lunatic Asylum. This case is just another of the examples of the pervasive violence in early Illinois and men's tendency to use violence to settle any conflict. (And women if you recall the article on cowhiding!) Some historians say it was this case that made the reputation of Leonard Sweet as an extraordinarily talented attorney.