CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY AND DEFENSE: Part 2

In Texas, there are general principles of criminal responsibility and general defense for it.

  • INSANITY
  • MISTAKE OF FACT
  • MISTAKE OF LAW
  • INTOXICATION
  • DURESS
  • ENTRAPMENT
  • AGE AFFECTING CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY
  • CHILD WITH MENTAL ILLNESS, DISABILITY, OR LACK OF CAPACITY

DURESS.  

(a)  It is an affirmative defense to prosecution that the actor engaged in the proscribed conduct because he was compelled to do so by threat of imminent death or serious bodily injury to himself or another.

(b)  In a prosecution for an offense that does not constitute a felony, it is an affirmative defense to prosecution that the actor engaged in the proscribed conduct because he was compelled to do so by force or threat of force.

(c)  Compulsion within the meaning of this section exists only if the force or threat of force would render a person of reasonable firmness incapable of resisting the pressure.

(d)  The defense provided by this section is unavailable if the actor intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly placed himself in a situation in which it was probable that he would be subjected to compulsion.

(e)  It is no defense that a person acted at the command or persuasion of his spouse, unless he acted under compulsion that would establish a defense under this section.

ENTRAPMENT.  

(a)  It is a defense to prosecution that the actor engaged in the conduct charged because he was induced to do so by a law enforcement agent using persuasion or other means likely to cause persons to commit the offense.  Conduct merely affording a person an opportunity to commit an offense does not constitute entrapment.

(b)  In this section “law enforcement agent” includes personnel of the state and local law enforcement agencies as well as of the United States and any person acting in accordance with instructions from such agents.

AGE AFFECTING CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY.  

(a)  A person may not be prosecuted for or convicted of any offense that the person committed when younger than 15 years of age except:

(1)  perjury and aggravated perjury when it appears by proof that the person had sufficient discretion to understand the nature and obligation of an oath;

(2)  a violation of a penal statute;

(3)  a violation of a motor vehicle traffic ordinance of an incorporated city or town in this state;

(4)  a misdemeanor punishable by fine only;

(5)  a violation of a penal ordinance of a political subdivision;

(6)  a violation of a penal statute that is, or is a lesser included offense of, a capital felony, an aggravated controlled substance felony, or a felony of the first degree for which the person is transferred to the court; 

(7)  a capital felony or an offense

CHILD WITH MENTAL ILLNESS, DISABILITY, OR LACK OF CAPACITY.  

On motion by the state, the defendant, or a person standing in parental relation to the defendant, or on the court’s own motion, a court shall determine whether probable cause exists to believe that a child, including a child with a mental illness or developmental disability:

(1)  lacks the capacity to understand the proceedings in criminal court

(2)  lacks substantial capacity either to appreciate the wrongfulness of the child’s own conduct or to conform the child’s conduct to the requirement of the law.

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