Psychosis, Childhood Crime, Responsibility and the Difficult Line Between Punishment and Protection
DISCLAIMER
This article discusses serious crime, psychosis, mental illness and children involved in offending behaviour. It does not suggest that people with mental illness are inherently dangerous, nor does it excuse violent or criminal behaviour. The purpose is to examine how forensic science, psychiatry, psychology, child protection and justice systems can respond when the person accused of a serious offence may have limited mental capacity or is very young.
Laws concerning criminal responsibility, mental illness and children differ considerably between countries. The legal principles described here are therefore general and should not be treated as legal advice.
INTRODUCTION: WHEN THE PERSON ACCUSED IS NOT AN ADULT
Crime is usually discussed through a familiar framework.
There is a victim.
There is an investigation.
There is evidence.
There is a suspect.
There may be a prosecution and, ultimately, a punishment.
But what happens when the suspect is experiencing severe psychosis?
What happens when the person accused of a serious offence is only nine, ten or eleven years old?
Suddenly, the conventional language of crime becomes much more complicated.
The questions are no longer limited to:
Who did it?
Investigators and courts may also have to ask:
What did this person understand?
What was happening in their mind at the time?
Did they understand that their actions could seriously harm another person?
Were they being controlled, manipulated or exploited by somebody else?
And when the accused is a child:
How much responsibility can society reasonably place on someone whose brain, judgment, impulse control and understanding are still developing?
These questions do not diminish the suffering of victims.
They make the investigation more demanding.
That is where forensic science meets one of the most difficult areas of justice: human behaviour.
1. PSYCHOSIS IS NOT THE SAME THING AS VIOLENCE
One of the first misconceptions that must be confronted is the idea that psychosis automatically makes someone dangerous.
It does not.
Psychosis can involve hallucinations, delusions and major disturbances in a person's perception of reality. Conditions such as schizophrenia can involve psychosis, but psychosis can occur in other circumstances as well.
The World Health Organization states that schizophrenia affects approximately 1 in 300 people globally and emphasizes both the availability of effective treatments and the severe stigma experienced by people living with the condition.
Most people experiencing mental illness are not violent criminals.
That distinction matters.
A forensic investigation should never begin with:
"This person has a psychiatric diagnosis, therefore they committed the crime."
Instead, investigators must examine evidence.
A diagnosis alone cannot establish what happened.
2. WHEN REALITY AND PERCEPTION COLLIDE
Imagine a person experiencing an untreated psychotic episode.
They may hear voices that other people cannot hear.
They may believe that someone is following them.
They may become convinced that another person is trying to poison, attack or control them.
To an outside observer, these beliefs may appear completely irrational.
To the person experiencing psychosis, however, they may feel completely real.
This creates an extraordinary forensic problem.
A criminal investigation is concerned with what actually happened.
Forensic psychiatry may also need to investigate what the accused believed was happening at the time.
Those are not necessarily the same thing.
That distinction can become critical when courts examine criminal responsibility.
3. THE FORENSIC PSYCHIATRIST: LOOKING BEYOND THE DIAGNOSIS
A forensic psychiatric assessment is not simply a search for a psychiatric label.
The central question can be much more specific:
What was the person's mental state at the relevant time, and what significance did that mental state have under the applicable law?
Depending on the jurisdiction, an assessment may consider:
psychiatric history;
previous episodes of psychosis;
hallucinations and delusions;
medication and treatment history;
substance use;
medical records;
behaviour before and after the offence;
statements made by the accused;
witness observations;
digital communications;
CCTV and other recordings;
neurological or medical evidence where relevant;
and the person's ability to understand reality and consequences.
This is where forensic investigation becomes multidisciplinary.
The psychiatrist does not replace the detective.
The detective does not replace the psychiatrist.
The laboratory scientist does not replace either.
Each contributes a different piece of the puzzle.
4. MENTAL ILLNESS DOES NOT ERASE THE VICTIM
There is another danger in discussions about mental illness and crime.
In trying to understand the accused, society can accidentally make the victim disappear from the story.
That must never happen.
A person who is seriously injured or killed remains a victim regardless of the mental state of the accused.
The victim's family deserves answers.
The community deserves protection.
And the investigation must establish the facts as accurately as possible.
Understanding the accused and protecting victims are not mutually exclusive objectives.
A humane justice system should be capable of doing both.
5. WHEN THE SUSPECT IS A CHILD
Now consider a completely different situation.
A ten-year-old commits an extremely serious act.
Perhaps another child is seriously injured.
Perhaps someone dies.
The public reaction can understandably be one of shock and anger.
The first instinct may be:
"How can someone that young do something like this?"
But forensic science asks a different set of questions.
What was the child's developmental level?
What did the child understand?
Was the behaviour planned?
Was the child acting alone?
Was an older person involved?
Was the child being threatened?
Was the child copying something they had seen?
Was there previous exposure to violence?
Was there abuse or neglect?
Was there a serious behavioural or psychological problem?
Was the child being recruited by criminals?
And perhaps most importantly:
Was this child themselves a victim?
6. CHILDREN ARE NOT SIMPLY SMALL ADULTS
The developing brain matters.
Children develop reasoning, impulse control, emotional regulation and the ability to anticipate consequences over time.
That does not mean children cannot understand right from wrong.
It means that responsibility cannot automatically be assessed using an adult psychological model.
International child-justice standards recognize this distinction.
The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has stated that countries should establish a minimum age of criminal responsibility and has encouraged states to set that age at at least 14, while recognizing that some countries have higher thresholds. It has also opposed exceptions that lower the age for particularly serious offences.
The exact law, however, depends on the country.
That distinction is essential.
There is no single worldwide rule saying that every child under 12 is treated identically.
7. WHAT HAPPENS BELOW THE AGE OF CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY?
Being below the criminal-responsibility age does not mean that authorities should simply walk away.
International guidance recognizes that children below the relevant minimum age may require protective and supportive interventions rather than conventional criminal prosecution.
UNICEF notes that children below the minimum age can have complex emotional and behavioural needs and may lack the maturity required to fully understand consequences, plan actions or control impulses.
That can mean involvement from:
child-protection services;
psychologists;
psychiatrists;
social workers;
schools;
families;
specialist medical services;
and other safeguarding professionals.
The objective is not to pretend that the event did not happen.
The objective is to prevent the next tragedy.
8. THE CHILD WHO WAS USED BY CRIMINALS
This is one of the most disturbing possibilities.
A child may not be the architect of a crime at all.
They may have been recruited.
Threatened.
Manipulated.
Rewarded.
Groomed.
Or coerced.
Criminal organizations can exploit vulnerable children because children may be easier to manipulate and may face different legal consequences from adults.
UNICEF specifically warns that children below the minimum age of criminal responsibility who are exploited by criminal adults should be treated as victims requiring protection and support.
This creates a critical forensic question:
When a child commits an offence, who else is behind the child?
Investigators should therefore examine the wider network.
Who supplied the child with information?
Who communicated with them?
Who provided transportation?
Who gave them money?
Who instructed them?
Who threatened them?
Who benefited?
The visible child may be only the most visible part of the investigation.
9. THE DIGITAL FORENSIC TRAIL
Modern childhood crime can leave an extraordinary digital footprint.
Messages.
Gaming platforms.
Social-media accounts.
Encrypted communications.
Search histories.
Location information.
Photographs.
Videos.
Cloud accounts.
Deleted files.
Contact networks.
Digital evidence can sometimes reveal whether a child acted independently or whether an older person was communicating with, manipulating or directing them.
But digital evidence must be interpreted carefully.
A message does not automatically establish its meaning.
A search does not automatically establish intent.
A photograph does not automatically prove participation.
Forensic investigators must establish authenticity, chronology, context and authorship.
The digital crime scene is still a crime scene.
10. THE ROLE OF FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY
Forensic psychology can help investigators and courts understand behaviour without turning psychology into guesswork.
A forensic psychologist may examine developmental history, behavioural patterns, family circumstances, trauma, cognitive functioning and other relevant factors.
But there is an important boundary.
Psychology should not become a crystal ball.
A professional cannot simply look at a child and declare:
"This child is a future murderer."
Nor should a diagnosis be treated as proof of criminal intent.
The purpose of assessment is to understand the individual and the circumstances using appropriate evidence.
11. WHAT ABOUT A CHILD WHO COMMITS MURDER?
This is perhaps the hardest question.
Imagine a child younger than the applicable criminal-responsibility age is involved in a homicide.
The victim is dead.
A family is grieving.
The evidence points toward the child.
Society understandably wants answers.
But several truths can exist simultaneously:
A terrible crime may have occurred.
A victim may deserve justice and recognition.
The child may have caused the death.
The child may also lack the developmental capacity for adult criminal responsibility.
The child may require intensive intervention to protect others and themselves.
These statements do not cancel each other out.
They are the difficult reality that child-justice systems must confront.
12. PUNISHMENT VERSUS PROTECTION
There is a fundamental difference between asking:
"How do we punish this child?"
and asking:
"How do we make sure this child never harms another person?"
The second question may lead toward intensive psychological treatment, structured supervision, family intervention, education, safeguarding and long-term monitoring.
In particularly serious cases, society may need robust protective measures.
But the objective should remain clear:
public safety and the child's rehabilitation, where possible—not revenge.
UNICEF guidance emphasizes diversion, alternatives to detention and the use of detention only as a last resort within child-justice systems.
13. WHEN PSYCHOSIS AND CHILDHOOD OVERLAP
There is another layer of complexity.
A child or adolescent can experience severe psychiatric symptoms.
If a young person experiences psychosis and becomes involved in a serious offence, investigators may face overlapping questions about:
developmental maturity;
psychiatric symptoms;
cognitive functioning;
family environment;
trauma;
substance exposure;
peer influence;
online influences;
and criminal exploitation.
The forensic assessment must therefore avoid simplistic explanations.
There may not be one cause.
Human behaviour rarely fits neatly into a single box.
14. THE DANGER OF LABELS
Words matter.
Calling somebody a "monster", "psychopath", "madman" or "born criminal" may generate attention, but such labels rarely help an investigation.
They can also distort public understanding.
A person is not a diagnosis.
A child is not a crime.
A psychiatric condition is not a criminal identity.
And an allegation is not a conviction.
Forensic Perspectives should always keep those distinctions visible.
15. THE EVIDENCE STILL COMES FIRST
Even when the suspect is mentally ill or extremely young, forensic fundamentals do not disappear.
Investigators still need to establish:
What happened?
Where did it happen?
When did it happen?
Who was present?
What physical evidence exists?
What digital evidence exists?
What does the medical evidence show?
What do witnesses say?
Are the accounts consistent?
Could another explanation fit the evidence?
Psychiatric or developmental considerations should not replace physical evidence.
They should help the justice system understand the person and circumstances surrounding that evidence.
16. PREVENTION BEGINS BEFORE THE CRIME
Perhaps the most important forensic question is not:
"How do we respond after a child commits a serious crime?"
It is:
"What could have been done before it happened?"
Early warning signs can sometimes include severe behavioural problems, exposure to violence, abuse, neglect, school exclusion, substance misuse, dangerous peer environments, exploitation and untreated mental-health difficulties.
None of these factors means a child will become violent.
But they can identify situations in which a child may need help.
Early intervention is therefore not simply a social-policy issue.
It can also be a crime-prevention strategy.
17. FAMILIES CANNOT DO IT ALONE
Parents and caregivers are often expected to identify every warning sign.
That is unrealistic.
Children interact with schools, healthcare systems, sports organizations, social services, online communities and peer groups.
A child-protection system works best when these environments can communicate appropriately and lawfully when serious concerns arise.
The goal should not be mass surveillance of children.
It should be early recognition of genuine risk and appropriate support.
18. WHAT FORENSIC SCIENCE CAN AND CANNOT DO
Forensic science can identify DNA.
It can analyze fingerprints.
It can reconstruct timelines.
It can examine digital evidence.
It can identify injuries.
It can establish toxicological findings.
It can compare physical traces.
It can help determine what happened.
But forensic science cannot answer every human question.
A laboratory cannot tell us everything about why a child became violent.
A DNA profile cannot explain a person's childhood.
A fingerprint cannot diagnose psychosis.
A digital message cannot independently explain someone's entire psychological state.
Science provides evidence.
The justice system must interpret that evidence within its proper context.
19. THE BALANCE BETWEEN SAFETY AND HUMAN RIGHTS
There is a temptation, especially after a shocking crime, to demand the strongest possible punishment.
But justice systems also have to protect fundamental rights.
WHO and the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights have emphasized that mental-health legislation should be grounded in human rights, dignity, non-discrimination and access to appropriate community-based care.
This matters because people experiencing severe mental illness can themselves become victims of abuse, neglect, homelessness, discrimination and inadequate care.
Public safety and human rights should not be treated as enemies.
A functioning justice system has to protect both.
20. THE QUESTION WE SHOULD REALLY ASK
When an adult with severe psychosis commits a serious offence, the question should not simply be:
"How can we punish this person?"
And when a child commits a serious offence, the question should not simply be:
"How can we punish this child like an adult?"
The better forensic questions are:
What happened?
What evidence proves it?
What was the person's mental and developmental state?
What circumstances contributed to the behaviour?
Was someone else involved?
Was the person a victim of exploitation?
What response protects the public?
What response protects victims?
What response prevents another crime?
These are much harder questions.
But they are the questions a mature justice system must be prepared to ask.
THE FORENSIC PERSPECTIVE
Crime investigation is often portrayed as a search for the person who committed the offence.
But some of the most difficult cases require investigators to go further.
They must understand the person, the evidence, the environment and the chain of events that produced the crime.
When the accused is experiencing psychosis, forensic psychiatry may become essential to understanding mental state.
When the accused is a very young child, developmental science and child protection become equally important.
And when a child is being manipulated by an adult criminal network, the investigation may need to look beyond the child entirely.
The answer cannot simply be punishment.
It cannot simply be treatment.
And it cannot simply be forgiveness.
The answer must be based on evidence, law, public safety, human rights and an understanding of human development.
Because the ultimate goal of forensic science is not merely to identify who did something.
It is to help establish what happened, why it happened, and how society can prevent it from happening again.
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A FINAL THOUGHT
There is something deeply uncomfortable about confronting crime committed by someone who may not fully understand what they have done.
It becomes even more uncomfortable when that person is a child.
Our instinct may be to look for a simple answer.
Good or evil.
Guilty or innocent.
Punishment or freedom.
But forensic science rarely gives us simple answers.
It gives us evidence.
And evidence sometimes forces society to confront uncomfortable truths:
A victim can deserve justice.
A community can deserve protection.
A person with severe mental illness can require treatment.
A child who commits a terrible act can still be a child.
And sometimes the person who appears to be the perpetrator may also be a victim of someone else's manipulation.
The challenge for modern justice is to recognize all of those realities at the same time.
Justice is not only about deciding what happened yesterday.
It is also about preventing what happens tomorrow.
REFERENCES
World Health Organization — Schizophrenia (2026).
World Health Organization & UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights — Mental Health, Human Rights and Legislation: Guidance and Practice.
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child — General Comment No. 24: Children's Rights in the Child Justice System.
UNICEF Europe and Central Asia — In Focus: Access to Justice for Children.
UNICEF Europe and Central Asia — Systematic Responses to Children Under the Minimum Age of Criminal Responsibility.
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