Under New York Penal Law, defendant may raise many defenses, regular and affirmative. With a regular defense, the prosecution has the burden to disprove the defense beyond reasonable doubt, and with an affirmative defense, the defendant has the burden to establish it by a preponderance of the evidence. One common ordinary defense that is raised in many violent crime cases is justification or self defense. Self-defense may apply to defending property, personal self-defense, necessity, or justifiable interaction with police. Justification is not an excuse for committing crime, but if used properly, it makes the act lawful.
Once a justification defense is raised, the state must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defense is inapplicable. However, the defendant must establish that he had acted with a “reasonable belief” that the conduct was necessary. The defendant’s state of mind at the time of the act is a very important trial issue
