Talking with Psychopaths and Savages: Guilty but Insane

by Christopher Berry-Dee

The plea of insanity in criminal cases can be traced back at least to the Babylonian Code of Hammurabi, which dates from 1755-1759 BC. It is a complicated defence, and its origins in modern law lie with what are called the 'M'Naghten Rules' of 1843, formulated by British judges as a jury instruction in cases where a plea of insanity had been entered. Daniel M'Naghten shot and killed one Edward Drummond, believing him to be the British Prime Minister, Sir Robert Peel, and was acquitted on the grounds of insanity, and the M'Naghten Rules still exert considerable influence over defences today.
Clearly a plea of insanity in murder cases is of critical importance when the death penalty is still applied, and even today it may still be the difference between a life sentence in a high-security prison, or an indeterminate one in a secure psychiatric hospital. Meanwhile, 27 of the USA's 50 states have retained or readopted the death penalty, and at least 54 other countries, including China, Russia, India, Iran and Saudi Arabia, also retain it.
Naturally, a criminal who was liable to swing for murder could, and sometimes did, make every attempt to appear insane, and this book examines some of these cases, as well as trials in which the accused was indeed judged to be insane. The failure rate is high; of seven American serial killers who deployed the defence in their trials, only two were successful, ending their days in secure psychiatric facilities; two were executed, and the other three either died or were killed while serving full-life sentences, or are still in gaol.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Crime, Education

255 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 4, 2024

About the author

Chris was a former Royal Marine intelligence officer. He is now a criminologist who has interviewed over 30 serial killers.

Reviews

[Matt Whitby · Rating 2 out of 5]

And so, take my hand, as we walk down the metaphorical lane towards our destination – which of course – and it goes without saying, though I am saying it, aren’t it.. where was I? Oh, a review. Yes. Let us without haste go towards our review. Stopping to get the thesaurus off the shelf; our critique, assessment evaluation, commentary or analysis. I digress. The review! Onwards to the review! Review, as you know, coming from the Middle French word revue, being the past participle of revoir, meaning ‘to see again’. This in turn coming from the Latin; ‘re’ meaning again and ‘videre’ meaning to see. I digress, again – the review! Where were we?

[Miss Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a true crime fan, this author is top of my list when it comes to true crime books. He tells it like it is and his regular injections of humour to lighten the mood make it possible to read his books in one sitting if tempted to do so.

That being said, this isn't one of his better books. It's good, don't get me wrong, but he has written far better ones. It's possible the subject matter made this a little harder to read, it just didn't floe as well as his others. And the constant typos and grammatical errors didn't help. Definitely not up to his usual standard.

[Yvonne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like to read books about true crime, especially ones that look at cases from the past and how treatments were performed. The author has brought all these things together to look at cases from the past and also some of the more recent ones. American serial killers are most often represented on streaming shows and there is also a good amount from other countries as well.

I think there is an interest in how people's minds work, especially those of serial killers, a morbid curiosity if you like. So this book looks at cases, treatments and how the plea of insanity is used in defense. Sometimes it works and at others, it does not, the author does ask at the end of each chapter if you think the killer is mad, insane or just evil.

The author has quite a laid-back way of presenting his findings, the cases, the treatments and also how the trials went with the outcomes. At times he has quite a jovial manner and this is actually quite refreshing and it does lighten the mood of what could be an intense subject. This does not mean he is joking about the crimes or the impacts though. He does not rely on the heavy use of jargon which again is good as it means the book keeps the readers' interest as it is not to science or education.

This is the first book I have read by this author but I am aware of him writing others, these are referred to several times during the book. Others are also referred to and one of these I have read.

This is a well-laid-out book, it is the author's opinions and he does have a good background to be able to make the observations he does. He has a background as an Intelligence Officer and has interviewed many serial killers. This is an author who would definitely make an interesting conversationalist as a dinner guest!

I liked this book a lot and I will be looking at reading more of his books.

This is a book that will interest those who have a, yes I am going to use the phrase again, 'morbid fascination' with serial killers, insanity pleas, and want a more relaxed approach rather than a technical or jargon-laden book. It is one I would definitely recommend.

[Peter Foster · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not the book I thought it was going to be but better. I have never read this author before nor really any books about psychology related stuff but this is SO well read and presented I thoroughly enjoyed it. There is a lovely dry humour that made me smile more than once - which you have to admit is clever in a book about killers and insanity. I will read others by the author because I enjoyed this a lot. It has taught me to step outside my comfort zone in choosing books for sure.

[Mikayla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Star Rating: 3/5

Thoughts: As a dedicated true crime enthusiast, this author ranks among my top favourites for true crime literature. His candid storytelling, paired with a delightful sense of humour, creates a refreshing reading experience that can capture your attention from start to finish. I genuinely appreciated this particular book by Christopher; it certainly held my interest. However, I must admit it didn’t quite reach the heights of my all-time favourites. Throughout many chapters, I noticed a tendency for him to venture into tangents on other subjects. While some of these digressions connected nicely with the main narrative, others felt somewhat unrelated. The writing occasionally wandered and included too much jargon, disrupting the story's smooth flow. Yet, when he focused on the main topic, the content was undeniably fascinating! Overall, I still enjoyed the journey and look forward to diving into more of his works, hoping for a tighter focus next time.

Takeaway message: At the end of the day, people can be very clever and might attempt to plead insanity in order to avoid a guilty charge. However, if they are not truly insane, the truth will eventually come to light. Moreover, can we truly define someone as insane, or are they simply a product of their environment and upbringing?

#talkingwithpsychopathsandsavages #guiltybutinsane #christopherberrydee #truecrime #crime #nonfiction

[Hannah Nuttall · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too rambly, too much jargon and too much digressing. Interesting content when the author actually wrote about the subject at hand but the constant tangents meant the writing didn’t flow and became difficult to digest. The constant typos and grammatical errors made it feel rushed, unedited and quite unprofessional. There was clearly a lot of research put in to this and the author is very knowledgable but it just didn’t hit the mark for me this time.

[Gina Lloyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a huge fan of Berry Dee. He's probably my favourite true crime author. Fans will be familiar with his usual tangential style but I found it slightly too much in this book I'm afraid. That slight moan aside I found the case studies interesting and gulped down this book in a day. I would definitely recommend it.

[Jake Fantom · Rating 3 out of 5]

For fans of true crime a very interesting and good book. Informative and well written. I enjoy the whimsical way the book is written making it feel more like a conversation than just reading a plethora of information, in which you could potentially become lost in all the legal jargon. I’m happy to report that this isn’t the case in this book, I hope to look into reading more by the same author.

[Gareth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Definitely NOT his best work. I have read atleast half a dozen of his works and this is sub par. Sloppy writing, poor grammar and lackluster content. Alot of his earlier works are must reads in my opinion but I struggled to even finish this one.

[Courtney Franklin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I sped through this book not because I was hooked, but because I wanted to be done with it. As a true crime enthusiast, I had high hopes, but the pacing felt sluggish and the writing leaned too heavily into technical details. Unfortunately, it just didn’t live up to expectations.

[Sarah Reynolds · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s okay but it’s very long winded and I’ve read better books by CBD

[Nicola (Nikki) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was OK felt it a bit long in chapters

[Joanne' Clarke · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing book , with inside information from the serial killers as told to the author.
First book I read from this author and I have read many more of his books since.
Amazing author

[Muhammad Nizam Bin Mohtar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-written book. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Caroline Stacey · Rating 2 out of 5]

i’m trying to read more non-fiction. i enjoyed the content of this book but sometimes the way the author talked was not enjoyable. i think other books of his would be better picks

[Staceywh_17 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a huge fan of Berry-Dee's books and love the depths he goes to in them. Not only does he write of the psychopaths and their crimes, he delves deep into their minds, their treatments and their backgrounds.

Not content with that, Berry-Dee has also interviewed many serial killers over time - whether to make an admission of guilt or a plea of insanity - he's done it all and shares it with us, the reader.

I have a morbid fascination with serial killers and psychopaths, and a love for psychology, so the book was right up my street. It's fascinating, enjoyable and very easy to read, Berry-Dee writes in a way that's easy to understand and isn't convoluted.