non compos mentis

[Latin nōn compos mentis : nōn, not + compos, in control + mentis, genitive sing. of mēns, mind.]

adjective

Afflicted with or exhibiting irrationality and mental unsoundness: brainsick, crazy, daft, demented, disordered, distraught, dotty, insane, lunatic, mad, maniac, maniacal, mentally ill, moonstruck, off, touched, unbalanced, unsound, wrong. Informal bonkers, cracked, daffy, gaga, loony. Slang bananas, batty, buggy, cuckoo, fruity, loco, nuts, nutty, screwy, wacky. Chiefly British crackers. Idioms: around the bend, crazy as a loon, mad as a hatter, not all there, nutty as a fruitcake, offout ofone's head, off one's rocker, of unsound mind, out of one's mind, sick in the head, stark raving mad. See sane/insane.

Lat: not having control over the mind or intellect. Not of sound mind; insane. See 108 A. 2d 820, 822. In certain circumstances its effect is lessened to mean only "not legally competent." See 1 S.E. 2d 768, 770. Compare diminished capacity; incompetent; non sui juris.

not in possession of one's senses

This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please improve this article if you can. (August 2009)

Overview

The term non compos mentis means 'not of sound mind'. 'Non compos mentis' derives from Latin, non meaning "not," compos meaning "having (command of)," and mentis, genitive singular of mens meaning mind.

Although typically used in law, this term can also be used metaphorically or figuratively, i.e. when one is in a confused state, intoxicated or not of sound mind.

In English law, the rule of non compos mentis was most commonly used when the defendant invoked religious or magical explanations for behavior.

IUS	This legal article about a Latin phrase is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v • d • e

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)