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In criminal law, diminished responsibility (or diminished capacity) is a potential defense by excuse by which defendants argue that although they broke the law, they should not be held fully criminally liable for doing so, as their mental functions were "diminished" or impaired.
The diminished actuality defense can be used as a defense when a “specific intent” crime is charged. In contrast, “general intent”, only requires that you perform the act. We’ll give a quick explanation of specific vs. general intent below.
Feb 14, 2024 · What is diminished capacity? Diminished capacity is essentially an argument for leniency. Diminished capacity is similar to the insanity defense in that it addresses the state of mind of the defendant during the criminal act.
Diminished capacity is a theory that a person due to unique factors could not meet the mental state required for a specific intent crime. A diminished capacity plea differs in important ways from an insanity defense. Insanity is an affirmative defense to crimes.
insanity and diminished capacity. Insanity and diminished capacity are two related, but distinct legal terms that are relevant in the field of Criminal Law. Both concepts can be used by individuals as defenses against a wide variety of charged crimes.
Diminished capacity and mental illness are often used interchangeably, but there is a significant difference between the two. Diminished capacity refers to a person’s ability to understand their actions and the consequences of those actions at the time they committed an offense.
In addition to insanity, diminished capacity in its many incarnations is the major legal doctrine that responds to mental abnormality. After first briefly outlining preliminary assumptions about responsibility and criminal justice, this chapter defines diminished capacity’s two variants: the mens rea and partial-responsibility variants.
