A Psycholegal Analysis of Offenders with a History of Childhood Trauma: A Lawrence Kohlberg Moral Development Perspective (A Case Study of Bangil District Court Decision Number 125/Pid.B/2020/PN Bil)

Abstract

This research aims to reconstruct the concept of mens rea (guilty mind) in criminal law through a psycholegal analysis of offenders with a history of extreme childhood trauma, utilising a case study of Bangil District Court Decision Number 125/Pid.B/2020/PN Bil. Employing a descriptive-analytical qualitative method, this study integrates the disciplines of criminal law, trauma neuropsychology, and Lawrence Kohlberg’s theory of moral development. The findings demonstrate that the prolonged latency period between the trigger event—witnessing the rape of his mother at the age of five—and the retaliatory act (homicide at the age of eighteen) did not constitute a 'cooling-off period' for premeditation (voorbedachten rade), but rather a period of trauma incubation. Neurobiologically, the defendant experienced an 'amygdala hijack' which impaired the prefrontal cortex and resulted in hippocampal dysfunction regarding the contextualisation of memories. This condition indicates the presence of a ground for the exclusion of criminal liability (schulduitsluitingsgrond) due to inner compulsion (vis compulsiva), thereby negating the element of mens rea. From the perspective of Kohlberg’s moral development, the defendant's actions are validated as a manifestation of the Universal Ethical Principle (Stage 6) to restore family dignity (Hifzhul ‘Irdh) following the failure of the formal legal system (Restorative Injustice). The research recommends the integration of forensic psychological reports to achieve substantive, victim-centred justice.