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Excuse: Infancy

Origin And Rationale, Modern Status, Bibliography



The infancy defense, which dates back to the common law and is still recognized in some form or another in the vast majority of jurisdictions, bars the prosecution of children below a specified age (age seven at common law) and presumptively precludes prosecution of older minors (ages seven to fourteen at common law) in the adult criminal justice system (although, under modern statutes, children in the latter group are still eligible for prosecution in juvenile delinquency proceedings).



RANDY HERTZ

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Law Library - American Law and Legal InformationCrime and Criminal Law