A New Jersey Federal Criminal Defense Lawyer on Affirmative Defenses and Alibi

A New Jersey federal criminal defense lawyer might employ several strategies on behalf of a defendant. Two of these strategies are the use of an affirmative defense or an alibi.

An Affirmative Defense

An affirmative defense does not try to refute the actual criminal offense, but instead will look at mitigating factors. Some common affirmative defenses are entrapment, duress, justifiable act, self defense or mental illness. This can be a mistaken defense approach for the following reasons:

• In many cases, an affirmative defense presents an opportunity for evidence to be presented to the jury that would normally be considered inadmissible. For example, this kind of defense may allow the prosecution to present evidence of similar things the defendant may have done in the past.
• If the defense presents an affirmative defense argument, the court may shift the burden of proof onto the defense. Even if the defense is not required to prove the argument, the jury might reject it unless there is evidence to support it. It is common for jurors to conclude that the defendant is essentially admitting that he or she committed the crime and is now seeking an excuse. To counteract this, the defense will have to make a very compelling argument.