Vol. 3, No. 2, 1997 Page 2 
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Vol. 3, No. 2, 1997 Page 2 |
"The history of one's universe is not written in the genes inherited from the sum of one's ancestors. Nor is one entirely the product of temptations and opportunities created by the environment in which the whole of one's self is expressed. It is becoming more and more obvious that we all occupy slightly different positions along a free-will/determinism continuum… influenced in varying degrees by a host of factors—one of which is quite possibly our genes.
"Nevertheless, we continue to ignore the role of behavior ecology in
criminal acts, content to believe that all transgressions are essentially
the result of moral lapses and flaws, entirely curable by punishment. Even
at the present stage of genetic and behavioral research, we already know
enough to conclude that certain individuals are statistically at risk for
certain types of behavioral traits strongly correlated with criminal
activity. The fact that not all individuals are equally 'wired' to exercise
the will necessary to resist temptation or impulse, highlights that human
beings are neither totally nor equally free agents. From various etiologies,
predispositions to certain types of behavior exist; and as behavioral
research progresses, we are likely to discover even more evidence of why
some human beings respond to, and interact differently with, their
environment than others."
Judge Richard L. Nygaard, U.S. Court of Appeals, in
"10 Commandments: Behavioral Genetic Data and Criminology,"
1996 address to the American Criminology Society
"Most clinicians and researchers are reluctant to speak of psychopathic
children, yet it is likely that the personality traits and behaviors that
define adult psychopathy begin to manifest themselves in childhood. If so,
early intervention is essential if they are ever to have any hope of
influencing the development and behavioral expression of the disorder."
Robert D. Hare, in
Criminal Justice and Behavior, 1996
"Most people consider brain disease to be a rare phenomenon. It is likely,
however, that more than 10 million Americans suffer from an obvious brain
disease, and the brains of perhaps another five million have been subtly
damaged. We do not mean to say that all of these brain-diseased people are
violent. What we are saying is that an appreciable percentage of the
relatively few individuals guilty of repeated personal violence are to be
found in this five to 10 percent of the population whose brains do not
function in a perfectly normal way."
Vernon Mark and Frank Ervin, cited in
Violence!, by John Langone, 1985
"If delinquency, learning disability and emotional illness are labels
actually reflecting biological reality, they must have consequences
measurable in terms of blood chemistry, immune reactions, and
psychoneurological styles. If these styles exist it is unlikely that they
are unitary, or that 'delinquent' is an adequate biological label. If some
components of delinquency are biogenetically mediated then it is very
probable that distinct biological patterns exist within the overall
classifications. These patterns will not likely respond to identical
interventions and it becomes a matter of utmost concern reliably to diagnose
the particular biological style associated with each subgroup."
George von Hilsheimer, in
"A Psychobiological Study of Delinquents," 1977
"Most aggravated forms of criminal behavior—acts of violence against
others—may have physiological origins. Obviously, these biological drives
can, in most individuals, be successfully tempered by socialization. Equally
obviously, they often cannot. In either case, it is important to understand
the true origins of the violent behavior, to understand that it originates
in an organic not environmental source. In finally recognizing the true
causes of the problem, perhaps the solutions will become more readily
accessible."
Lawrence Taylor, in
Born to Crime, 1984