Criminal Law

Entrapment

Definition

Entrapment is a defense asserting that the government induced the defendant to commit a crime that the defendant was not predisposed to commit. Under the subjective test (the majority approach), the focus is on the defendant's predisposition — a predisposed defendant cannot claim entrapment regardless of government inducement. Under the objective test (the minority/MPC approach), the focus is on the government's conduct — whether it would likely induce a law-abiding person to commit the crime. Entrapment applies only to government agents, not private individuals.

Example

An undercover officer repeatedly pressures a reluctant person to sell drugs, offering increasingly large sums of money. If the person had no predisposition to deal drugs, entrapment may be established.

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