a defence used in criminal cases where the accused's mental state leads them to commit a crime without knowing they are doing it. Insane automatism is when a person is mentally ill and commits the crime. Non-insane automatism is when the accused was temporarily affected, for example while sleepwalking or suffering from a fit or concussion.
A successful plea of automatism will result in a full acquittal.
a serious illness affecting someone's brain and memory in which they gradually stop being able to think or behave in a normal way. Most forms of dementia usually affect only old people. 痴呆(症)(一种影响大脑和记忆的严重病症,患病者无法正常思维或行动,大多数痴呆症通常只影响老年人)
a serious mental illness in which you experience extreme changes in mood, sometimes feeling very excited and sometimes feeling very unhappy. Many people now prefer to use the word bipolar disorder. 狂躁抑郁症
someone who is mentally handicapped is not able to learn or develop skills at the same rate as most other people because they have a problem with their brain. It is now considered more polite to say that someone is learning disabled or that they have special needs or learning difficulties. 智障的;弱智的
post-traumatic stress disorder: a mental illness caused by having or seeing a very frightening experience, for example fighting in a warThis meaning is based on one submitted to the Open Dictionary from United Kingdom on 17/10/2016