December 3, 2024
What is the Burden of Proof for Self-Defense in Michigan?
If you were charged with a violent crime in Michigan, you may wonder if you can successfully claim self-defense to beat the charges. To succeed with a self-defense strategy, you must not have been engaged in a crime when you used force, and you must overcome the burden of proof, which has two primary criteria.
Reasonable Belief of Imminent Harm
The first component of a self-defense claim is to demonstrate that you reasonably believed the other party was going to use force against you or another person. For example, if someone threatened to harm you while advancing toward you, you may have reasonably believed they would follow through on their threats.
Reasonable Belief that Use of Force is Necessary
The second component of a self-defense claim is to demonstrate that you reasonably believed using force was necessary to defend yourself from the perceived imminent harm. In Michigan, a person who is lawfully in an area has no duty to retreat. However, to claim self-defense, you must have believed that you could not avoid being harmed by means other than using force yourself.
Use of Deadly Force
Claiming self-defense when using deadly force, such as if you used a firearm, is similar to claiming self-defense using non-deadly force. The only difference is that to use deadly force as self-defense, you must have believed that the other person was going to use deadly force against you and that your use of deadly force was the only way to protect yourself.
Contact a Michigan Criminal Defense Attorney
If prosecutors charged you with a violent crime in Michigan and you want to claim self-defense, you need the help of an experienced criminal defense attorney. Contact Stacer, PLC, for a consultation about your case and to learn more about the defense strategies that may be available.