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What types of legal strategies constitute affirmative defenses?

On Behalf of | Jan 19, 2025 | Criminal Defense

Many criminal defendants trying to fight charges focus on proving their innocence. Defense attorneys can help their clients validate alibis, show that there are issues with how the state analyzed evidence or exclude certain evidence from court due to police officer misconduct.

Thorough evidentiary analysis combined with assertive representation can often help defendants avoid unjust convictions. If they can raise a reasonable doubt about whether they broke the law, the outcome of a trial could be in their favor.

Not all defendants can raise questions about their involvement in an incident. There may be confessions, video footage or forensic evidence directly tying them to the alleged criminal activity. In such cases, an affirmative defense strategy might be the best option available.

What does an affirmative defense involve?

Affirmative defense strategies rely on technical provisions in state criminal statutes. There are an assortment of scenarios in which defense attorneys can assert that their clients engaged in certain behavior, but extenuating circumstances make their actions non-criminal.

Common grounds for affirmative defenses in Wisconsin include:

  • claims of self-defense
  • the defense of others
  • the need to defend personal property
  • adequate provocation
  • involuntary intoxication
  • coercion
  • privilege
  • necessity
  • duress
  • mental incapacity

In unusual and extreme scenarios, people may act in ways that could be criminal but are not because of the circumstances surrounding the incident.

For example, in self-defense scenarios, individuals accused of assault or even homicide show the courts that their use of physical force was justifiable because of the imminent threat of physical harm they face. If other reasonable people would also feel threatened by the situation, then the defense team may be able to raise a claim of self-defense to help the defendant avoid a conviction.

In scenarios where eliminating or undermining evidence is unlikely to be a successful strategy, an affirmative defense might be a better option. People who feared for their safety, who misunderstood the situation or who were not in their right minds may not be criminally culpable for their actions.

Discussing different approaches to criminal defense with a skilled legal team can help defendants avoid a life-altering conviction. The law allows people to justify their actions in certain circumstances subject alternative defense strategies and special cases.