What is the Defense of Entrapment?
Some types of defense strategies can apply to various types of criminal charges because they do not relate specifically to the elements of the offense, but rather to an act that occurred during the alleged commission of a criminal offense. Entrapment is one such defense — it can apply, if the elements are met, to various kinds of criminal cases ranging from drug crimes to white-collar crimes. As the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) explains, it is a complete defense to a criminal charge when it applies, which means that you can clear the charges against you if you were in fact entrapped.
At the same time, there are many colloquial descriptions of entrapment that circulate, and it is important to know that this is a defense that has very specific elements that must be met. Our Tampa criminal defense lawyers can explain in more detail below.
Understanding Entrapment
According to Merriam-Webster, entrapment is defined as “the action of luring an individual into committing a crime in order to prosecute the person for it.”
The criminal defense of entrapment is related to this general dictionary definition, but it is more specific and refers in particular to a situation in which a government act “originate[s] a criminal design, implant[s] in an innocent person’s mind the disposition to commit a criminal act, and then induce[s] commission of the crime so that the government may prosecute,” according to the US Supreme Court decision in Jacobson v. United States (1992).
Elements of Entrapment
What are the specific elements of entrapment that a person facing charges must prove in order to have this defense apply to their case? There are two key elements:
- 1) Government inducement of the offense; and
- 2) Defendant’s lack of predisposition to engage in the offense.
The Supreme Court has made clear that both these elements must be met — inducement (which is more than “mere solicitation”) and a lack of predisposition to commit a criminal act. Inducement is the “threshold issue in the entrapment defense,” according to the DOJ, but it must be coupled with a clear finding of lack of predisposition. As the DOJ explains, “even if inducement has been shown, a finding of predisposition is fatal to an entrapment defense.”
Contact a Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney for Assistance Defending Against the Charges You Are Facing in Florida
There are a wide range of defense strategies that can be applied when you are facing any type of criminal charges in Florida, and the best defense strategy will be one that is tailored to the particular facts of your case. Some defense strategies can apply broadly, while others may only apply to specific offenses due to one of the elements of the offense. As we discussed above, entrapment can apply as a defense to a wide range of criminal cases when entrapment has occurred — from drug crimes and weapons offenses to white-collar crimes. Whether you want to find out more about building a defense based on entrapment or you need general counsel as you defend against the charges you are facing, an experienced Tampa criminal defense lawyer at the Law Offices of Daniel J. Fernandez, P.A. can speak with you today. Contact our firm to learn more about the criminal defense services we provide.
Source:
justice.gov/archives/jm/criminal-resource-manual-645-entrapment-elements
