Morbid

Podbit · Morbid

Lorena and John Wayne Bobbitt

Explore episode Jul 27, 2026
True Crime
Lorena's Defense: PTSD, Temporary Insanity, and 'The Instrument of Torture'

Lorena and John Wayne Bobbitt · Jul 27, 2026 True Crime

At Lorena's trial for malicious wounding, her psychiatrist argued she struck at 'the instrument of her torture' while suffering from PTSD — a clean narrative of trauma response. The prosecution's psychiatrist countered that severing the penis was 'goal-oriented behavior,' not a truly impulsive act. The jury came down the middle: not guilty by reason of temporary insanity.

1m 52s

Where this was said

Lorena Bobbitt's Trial & Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity

At 47:28 · chapter starts 46:10

At Lorena's trial, the same district attorney who had expressed implicit sympathy for her in the previous case now declared she 'belonged behind bars.' Lorena took the stand again, sobbing as she described being choked and raped, and told the male prosecutor directly: 'Maybe you don't understand because you're a man.' Her defense rested on a psychiatrist's argument that she was suffering from PTSD and 'struck at the instrument of her torture' in a moment of temporary insanity. The prosecution's own psychiatrist countered that the act was 'goal-oriented behavior' — she chose the weapon, chose the target, and acted deliberately, which is inconsistent with a truly impulsive break from reality. Ash and Alaina note they can see both arguments. The jury came down the middle: not guilty by reason of temporary insanity, with a recommendation that Lorena be committed for psychiatric evaluation. She was held at a mental health facility for more than a month before a judge accepted the hospital's report that she was no longer a danger and discharged her.

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