eddie ray routh in american sniper movie

However, he did explain shooting and killing a woman who was holding her toddler. Of his 160 confirmed kills, Kyle might have killed a child or children, but he doesn't mention it in his book. Much of the first half of 'American Sniper' is built around Chris Kyle's first kills: a little boy and his mother who were trying to throw a grenade at a group of Marines. He also knew he could be portrayed as something he wasn't.' 'Chris only wrote that book because other people were going to write it about it and he felt proper credit wouldn't be given to those he served with. I t's worth noting why Chris Kyle decided to write 'American Sniper ' his widow Taya Kyle explained the decision at the 2013 National Rifle Association conference. Military History' was the basis of much of what we saw in the movie. Warning: Lots of spoilers ahead.Ĭhris Kyle's autobiography 'American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. So how accurate was Bradley Cooper's portrayal of Kyle? We'll dispel some of the myths and make a few notes about what the movie left out. Of course, for the families of the victims, the Routh’s conviction and swift sentencing likely brings the beginning of a healing process which, regardless of Routh’s mental state, is a welcome notion for anyone who cares about their fellow man.It seems since its Christmas Day release - Clint Eastwood's film ' American Sniper' based on the life of Navy Seal Chief Petty Officer, Chris Kyle - has continued to be the subject of both criticism and praise. A criminal court conviction of not guilty by reason of insanity usually means the defendant is committed to a mental hospital, frequently until they are able to successfully petition a court for their relief after a finding that they no longer pose a danger. So while the media at large or those in the Court of Public Opinion feel that many criminals escape punishment as a result of the frequent and effective use of this “strategy” a one quarter of one percent effectiveness rate is actually quite low.Īnd, those few who are successful in mounting a defense of insanity aren’t just handed the keys to the jailhouse door and invited to leave. Studies on the criminal justice system reveal that insanity is used as a defense only one percent of criminal cases, and that it is successful only 25% of the time that it is offered. One of most fertile areas for successful appeals concerns jurors, so expect lawyers to revisit the transcript of jury selection to see if admissions concerning watching or being influenced by the film are at odds with what is now being revealed in the media.Ĭontrary to what many people believe, the insanity defense is actually relatively uncommon. An appeal is based on the idea that because of an error, the trial itself was unfair. Interestingly, though deliberations didn’t run as long as the American Sniper movie, that fact that at least one criminal trial juror admitted publicly to watching the movie may show up again later, this time in the context of an appeal. The criminal jury in Routh’s case was rejected this notion out of hand. It requires a person to be so far gone that they can no longer appreciate the wrongfulness of their conduct. While most Americans may believe Routh to be two full scoops of crazy for taking these two lives, whatever mental illness or defect he suffered from didn’t rise to the legal definition of insanity. In fact, when you back out the hour of deliberations spent on a dinner break, the total spent deliberating on Routh’s guilt after nine days of trial is less than the two hour and 14 minute run time of the actual American Sniper movie. Routh had mounted an insanity defense, but the short period of deliberations speaks to the jurors resoundingly rejecting the insanity claims. Kyle, of course, is widely known as Navy SEAL sniper whose story is told in the Clint Eastwood film American Sniper.

A Texas jury took two and half hours to reach a guilty verdict against Eddie Ray Routh in the murders of Chris Kyle and Kyle’s friend Chad Littlefield.

Eddie ray routh in american sniper movie