# forced crime conviction? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 3, 2001, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forced-crime-conviction/60677 "2001-04-03T20:03:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![curiousgeorgeordeadcat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@curiousgeorgeordeadcat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curiousgeorgeordeadcat)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2001, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forced-crime-conviction/60677/1 "2001-04-03T20:03:15Z")
Suppose you are forced, say at gunpoint, to commit a crime. Can you be convicted of that crime? Does it depend on the crime? (I am wondering about U.S. laws, but discussion of other nations’ laws may be of interest, too.) ---
**Author:** ![RufusLeaking](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c5a1d2/32.png) [@RufusLeaking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RufusLeaking)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2001, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forced-crime-conviction/60677/2 "2001-04-03T21:27:55Z")
IMHO In theory you could not be convicted, but in practice you very may well be convicted of such a crime because you you would have to prove that someone, in fact, was holding a gun to your head. Remember Patty Hearst? In general, you have to have criminal intent to be convicted of a crime. I wonder if you could be held financially responsible for such a crime in a civil court? For instance, someone holds a gun to your head and tells you to smash all the windows in your neighbor’s car. Could your neighbor sue you (and win) even if you are not convicted of a crime? ---
**Author:** ![Ned](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/848f3c/32.png) [@Ned](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ned)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2001, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forced-crime-conviction/60677/3 "2001-04-03T22:04:25Z")
Thats called the defence of duress. It does depend on the crime and, of course, the willingness of the jury to believe you. Generally it doesn’t operate as a defence to murder, there may be other exceptions. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2001, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forced-crime-conviction/60677/4 "2001-04-04T03:29:19Z")
IIRHSGCC (If I Remember High School Gov’t Class Correctly), this is a case of blackmail. If somebody makes you, say, steal something out of a store because they’ve threatened to kill you if you don’t, then you can defend yourself by saying that you were being blackmailed. According to Gov class, however, you can’t use blackmail to justify a violent crime. ---
**Author:** ![msc75](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bc79bd/32.png) [@msc75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msc75)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2001, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forced-crime-conviction/60677/5 "2001-04-04T03:33:02Z")
How about war crimes? In Nazi Germany, I’m pretty sure that the guards would have been offed had they not obeyed their orders to exterminate Jews. Yet a great many of them were tried and convicted. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2001, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forced-crime-conviction/60677/6 "2001-04-04T04:26:40Z")
> [@](#): > > In Nazi Germany, I’m pretty sure that the guards would have been offed had they not obeyed their orders to exterminate Jews. Yet a great many of them were tried and convicted. There’s no evidence to support your claim. There were millions of people living in Germany during the Nazi era who didn’t work in concentration camps. Obviously, it was possible to survive without participating in the killing of others. ---
**Author:** ![msc75](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bc79bd/32.png) [@msc75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msc75)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2001, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forced-crime-conviction/60677/7 "2001-04-04T05:35:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Little Nemo \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > In Nazi Germany, I’m pretty sure that the guards would have been offed had they not obeyed their orders to exterminate Jews. Yet a great many of them were tried and convicted. > > There’s no evidence to support your claim. There were millions of people living in Germany during the Nazi era who didn’t work in concentration camps. Obviously, it was possible to survive without participating in the killing of others. \*\* Umm, I wasn’t saying that every German citizen was a guard for the SS. Or even that they worked in concentration camps. No evidence to support my claim? It’s common knowledge that many, many of Hitler’s henchmen were tried, convicted and put to death for “following orders”. ---
**Author:** ![Xgemina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/b5e925/32.png) [@Xgemina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xgemina)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2001, 9:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/forced-crime-conviction/60677/8 "2001-04-04T09:23:31Z")
IANAL, however, criminal statutes require several elements that must be proved in order to prosecute someone. Intent is a major element, or if not intent then negligence/recklessness (and knowing such negligence/recklessness could possibly result in harm), of all criminal statutes. (or I should say I can’t think of any that don’t have it) If the prosecution can’t prove that element beyond a reasonable doubt, then they havn’t proved their case. You, of course, may need to supply your own evidence that you where forced to do it. Many civil tort issues also require intent or negligence/recklessness and I dare to guess that you would be off the hook there as well. All of the above only applies to American jurisprudence, however I doubt it would be much different in any system based on English common law.