Andrea Yates Verdict.

As has been reported and discussed all over the web, the jury in Andrea Yates' retrial in Texas yesterday returned a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity.

Instead of rehashing and discussing it here, I'll just point you over to TalkLeft and THIS post. There's a relatively lively discussion going on there in the comments about whether this was a "just" verdict or not.

Personally, I don't know if it was the right verdict or not. I don't know if she truly was insane at the time, or not. If she was, then this was a just verdict; if not, it wasn't. According to a New York Daily News article, a New York psychiatrist who testified in the case is predicting she'll be released soon, no spending years in a mental institution:

Yates, 42, will be committed to a state mental hospital until a judge deems her well enough to be released.

But New York forensic psychiatrist Dr. Michael Welner - who interviewed Yates in May as the prosecution's lead expert - predicted that she would be released quickly because her disorder is being well-managed.

"I expect she will be home soon," Welner said.

Welner, of NYU's School of Medicine, said he respected the jury's "difficult decision" but disagreed with the verdict.

"There's a tremendous amount of evidence supporting the fact that she knew what she was doing was wrong," he said.