In class on Tuesday I was not terribly surprised to hear that a scientist in the 19th century had tried to develop a model that could identify criminals based on their appearances. It lined up with what I already knew about Social Darwinism and other theories that sought out biological justifications for perceived racial superiority. It is relieving to think that we have left many of these theories behind. Or have we?
Per Ystehede and Paul Knepper argue in chapter seven of their work, The Cesare Lombroso Handbook, that the long dead Italian criminal anthropologist’s influence can still be seen today in the world of criminal justice, specifically among forensic psychologists and neuroscientists. The authors point out that modern neuroscientists believe that they can accurately measure reactions in the brain using technologies like MRI’s and other methods. Thus, they believe that through understanding how the brain works, we can explain all kinds of human behavior, regardless of how complex it is. This understanding is beginning to extend into the courtroom, as MRI’s are now being used in real trails, such as that of the serial killer Brian Dugin, to argue that the brains of violent criminals function differently than the brains of most of the population. In Dugin’s case, his defense lawyers are trying to argue his insanity based on his MRI scans. Modern neuroscientists share this positivist way of understanding human beings with Lombroso and the only difference seems to be that they are basing their findings on more advanced technology.
In fact, Kent Kiehl, a University of New Mexico neuroscientist, has earned the nickname “the new Lombroso” for his belief that imprisoned criminals have identifiably different MRI brain scans than all of us law-abiding citizens. I now feel alarmed that Lombroso’s legacy seems not to be dead at all.
Ystehede, Per, and Paul Knepper. The Cesare Lombroso Handbook. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, 2013. https://auth-lib-unc edu.libproxy.lib.unc.edu/ezproxypass:[_]auth.php?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.libproxy.lib.unc.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=517311&site=ehost-live.