Rights to the Accused
- In a criminal case, the Crown must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused had both actus reus and mens rea to commit a crime.
- In response, the accused has a legal right to present a defense
- Defenses generally come in three forms:
- Explanation/Excuse Defense - Admit guilt, but explain the incident to provide context, mitigating the penalty.
- Justification Defense - Admit guilt, but justify the guilt with valid legal defense.
- Acquittal Defense - Do not admit guilt, provide defense that challenges elements of a crime.
- Where guilt is not admitted, or a justification defense provided, defense lawyers tend to confront the elements of a crime:
- Some defenses deny committing the act; disputing the actus reus
- Some defenses argue that they lacked intent; disputing the mens rea.
Defense #1: Alibi
Example: Person A told the police that Person B could not have stolen the iPod at the beginning of lunch because they were in Jerry’s hotdog line. You have the mustard stain to prove it. Definition: Arguing that the accused was not at the scene of the crime when it took place, and therefore could not have committed the crime.
Defense #2: Automatism
Definition: an involuntary action by a person who cannot control their actions and who is in a state of impaired consciousness.
This defense has two forms:
Insane Automatism
Definition: This type of automatism is linked to a mental illness or disability. If it can be proven that an accused person suffered from a mental disorder and as a result was incapable of knowing that what they were doing was wrong. The accused may be declared not criminally responsible (NCR).
Non-Insane Automatism
Definition: This type of automatism is often referred to as “temporary insanity”. An accused person who uses this defense argues that they committed a crime while in a temporary state of impaired consciousness.
Defense #3: Intoxication
Definition: The accused demonstrates that they did not have a guilty mind at the time of the crime because they were intoxicated. (Most commonly drugs or alcohol). Intoxication may be used as a partial defense. Generally, an intoxicated person cannot form specific intent but may be found guilty of a general intent offense. If successful, this defense can lower a conviction or reduce a criminal sentence.
Defense #4: Self Defense
Definition: the legal use of reasonable force in order to defend yourself and your property. The Criminal Code allows people to use force if they have to defend themselves, but the amount of force should not be excessive. No more than necessary. The use or exchange of force must be reasonable.
Defense #5: Battered Woman Syndrome
Definition: a psychological conditioned caused by severe and usually prolonged domestic violence. Explanation: Different from Self Defense, imminent vs prolonged:
- in a typical self-defense case, the danger is immediate.
- With BWS, the danger may not be immediate but instead is constant.
Defense #6: Necessity
Definition: Accused persons claim they were forced to commit a criminal act, because they were in danger themselves. This can only be in situations where there is an “imminent risk”.
Defense #7: Duress
Definition: When someone is threatened or coerced to do something against their will. Similar to the necessity defense, accused claims to have been forced to commit a crime as the result of being in imminent danger.