> I would not first describe them that way should they choose to premeditate harm against others.
That's why a judge often has to determine if the person is mentally ill or just a criminal.
There are plenty of situations where someone has hurt other people and they've been literally insane.
If your insanity causes you to believe that someone is doing horrible things like murdering children you might decide to do them harm, thinking you're the good guy.
In reality you have paranoid schizophrenia or a litany of other mental health issues.
I think it's very nearly a difference without meaning here. If you commit mass violence out of insanity, you're probably going to be in a mental hospital for the rest of your life. Functionally akin to a lifetime prison sentence in that in both cases the perpetrator is removed from society forever. It's not that I have no empathy for the mentally unwell, it's just that when your illness begins to cause actions that will harm the world around you, you're defined in terms of those acts as well as your illness. A mentally unwell person who kills someone is still a killer (I purposely stay away from murder as I do not know law or that murder can be applied to those who are not convicted for reasons of insanity).
That's why a judge often has to determine if the person is mentally ill or just a criminal.
There are plenty of situations where someone has hurt other people and they've been literally insane.
If your insanity causes you to believe that someone is doing horrible things like murdering children you might decide to do them harm, thinking you're the good guy.
In reality you have paranoid schizophrenia or a litany of other mental health issues.
It's not cut and dry :-/