Discuss four of the most important justification criminal defenses.
What will be an ideal response?
Answers will vary. Duress exists when the wrongful threat of one person induces another person to perform an act that she or he would otherwise not perform. In such a situation, duress is said to negate the mens rea necessary to commit a crime. For duress to qualify as a defense, the following requirements must be met:1. The threat must be of serious bodily harm or death.2. The harm threatened must be greater than the harm caused by the crime.3. The threat must be immediate and inescapable.4. The defendant must have become involved in the situation through no fault of his or her own.A person who believes she or he is in danger of being harmed by another is justified in defending himself or herself with the use of force, and any criminal act committed in such circumstances can be justified as self- defense. Other situations that also justify the use of force include the defense of another person, the defense of one's dwelling or other property, and the prevention of a crime. In all these situations, it is important to distinguish between nondeadly and deadly force. As the terms themselves suggest, nondeadly force is unlikely to cause death or great bodily harm, while deadly force is likely to cause death or great bodily harm.The necessity defense requires courts to weigh the harm caused by the crime actually committed against the harm that would have been caused by the criminal act avoided. If the avoided harm is greater than the committed harm, then the defense has a chance of succeeding. Murder is the one crime for which the necessity defense is not applicable under any circumstances.Entrapment is a justification defense that criminal law allows when a police officer or government agent deceives a defendant into wrongdoing. Although law enforcement agents can legitimately use various forms of subterfuge-such as informants or undercover agents-to gain information or apprehend a suspect in a criminal act, the law places limits on these strategies. Police cannot persuade an innocent person to commit a crime, nor can they coerce a suspect into doing so, even if they are certain she or he is a criminal.
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Fill in the blank(s) with the appropriate word(s).
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Indicate whether the statement is true or false.