Posted: May 19th, 2017

While shopping at a supermarket, Marcia received a call from her daughter’s school. The caller said that the girl had been seriously injured in a playground accident and was on the way to the hospital in an ambulance. Marcia ran from the store and got in her car but, for some reason, it wouldn’t start. As she headed back to the store to get help, she noticed an unoccupied car with the motor running. Marcia jumped in the unoccupied car and drove straight to the hospital. Prosecuted for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, Marcia wants to claim the defense of necessity

While shopping at a supermarket, Marcia received a call from her daughter’s school. The caller said that the girl had been seriously injured in a playground accident and was on the way to the hospital in an ambulance. Marcia ran from the store and got in her car but, for some reason, it wouldn’t start. As she headed back to the store to get help, she noticed an unoccupied car with the motor running. Marcia jumped in the unoccupied car and drove straight to the hospital. Prosecuted for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, Marcia wants to claim the defense of necessity. a. Even assuming that Marcia’s actions constituted the lesser evil, other requirements of the necessity defense would probably pose insurmountable obstacles. b. There would be sufficient evidence to charge the jury on the defense of necessity as long as a person in Marcia’s situation might have acted as she did. c. In general, the defense of necessity would be available as long as Marcia honestly believed that she was choosing the lesser evil, even if the court later decides otherwise. d. It would generally be more appropriate, in circumstances such as these, to apply the defense of duress rather than necessity.