Q: Does anything happen to someone that was threatened into complying with a crime?
Clarifying that this is just for a thing I'm writing. The character in question was threatened by a serial killer (in multiple ways) to comply (cover-up/fabricate evidence, omit their witnesses, etc) with their murders. Would any legal punishment happen to this character under this circumstance? Are there procedures such as needing to prove that they were actually threatened? Thank you in advance. (I'm not sure if this goes under "criminal law" or something else, sorry.)
A: What you're describing is the defense of Duress. And most of the time, murder isn't a crime for which the defense can be raised. There is generally a whole host of things needed to be proven to be successful including immediate threat, well-grounded fear, no reasonable opportunity of escape, etc. Double your state's law for specifics.
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