Jumping the gun

Can our society be too quick to condemn those who have been pressured into doing malicious activities? In the episode White Bear, the woman who is being held prisoner claimed to be pressured into abducting the little girl and the filming of her murder. Assuming she was actually forced into doing these things, would we still put the blame on her?

It has been known that individuals in the past have been seduced and brainwashed into doing criminal activities. For instance the case of Patty Hearst, the granddaughter William Hearst. She was kidnapped and held prisoner and kept in a closet for weeks by the Symbionese Liberation Army. After all this torture, she was brainwashed into joining them on their crime spree. Eventually she was caught and sent to prison, but later after a lengthy battle with the law, Jimmy Carter himself had her 7 year sentence reduced to 22 months. Later, in 2001, Bill Clinton even gave her a full pardon. This was a very controversial case in the point of who is actually guilty in these crimes. 

This issue that I believe is presented in White Bear, can be held as an example to show how naive the penal system can be sometimes when it comes to discerning criminal intent with mental illness. It also reflects our societies eagerness to condemn others without knowing all the facts first. It is the need for a sense of justice in all of us, whether we know it or not, it will always be there. It is our duty to restrain our feelings from interfering with cases that require reason and remain understanding to each situation, no matter how horrible they might be.