Name: _____________________________

Date: ________________

Defenses against Crimes

Read each example. Determine the proper defense used for each person. Explain the argument for
defending your client.

1. Your client shot and killed a man. The client used their legally purchased firearm to defend
themselves from a robbery in which the deceased used a fake gun to threaten your client.

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2. Your client is accused of murdering her husband, who she claims has regularly assaulted her.
There are police and hospital records affirming this report. She has bruises on her face and neck,
and the deceased has bruises on his hands in addition to three bullets in his chest.

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3. Police reports indicate your client started a bar fight with another patron. During the fight,
witnesses say that the other patron pulled out a knife during a fistfight, and that your client used a
chair to attack the patron. The chair hit the other man’s neck and head, causing injury that
resulted in death. Your client has been charged with aggravated assault and murder.

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 4. Your client is accused of aggravated robbery and assault in a bank robbery. The client says they
only committed the crime because someone was threatening their child if they didn’t rob the
bank.

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