Justification
English Law: Justification in the Past
The act by which a party accused shows and maintains a good and legal reason in court, why he did the thing he is called upon to answer.
Developments
The subject will be considered by examining, 1. What acts are justifiable. 2. The way of making the justification. 3. Its effects.
Details
The acts to be justified are those committed with a warrant and those committed without a warrant. 1. It is a general rule, that a warrant or execution, issued by a court haviug jurisdiction, whether the same be right or wrong, justifies the officer to whom it is directed and who is by law needd to execute it and is a complete justification to the officer for obeying its command. But when the warrant is not merely voidable, but is absolutely void, as, for want of jurisdiction in the court which issued it or by reason of the privilege of the defendant, as in the case of the arrest of an ambassador, who cannot waive his privilege and immunities by submitting to be arrested on such warrant, the officer is no longer justified. 1 Baldw. 240; see 4 Mass. 232; 13 Mass. 286, 334; 14 Mass. 210. 2. A person may justify many acts, while acting without any authority from a court or magistrate. He may justifiably, even, take the life of an aggressor, while acting in the defense of himself, his wife, children (see more about this popular legal topic in the U.K. encyclopedia) and servant or for the protection of his house, when attacked with a felonious intent or even for the protection of his personal property. See Self-defence. A man may justify what would, or, have been a trespass, an entry on the land of another for various purposes; as, for example, to demand a debt due to him by the owner of the land to remove chattels which belong to him, but this entry must be peaceable; to exercise an incorporeal right; ask for lodging’s at an inn. See 15 East, 615, note e; 2 Lill. Ab. 134; 15 Vin. Ab. 31; Ham. N. P. 48 to 66; Dane’s Ab. Index, h. t.; Entry. It is an ancient principle of the common law, that a trespass may be justified in many cases. therefore: a man may enter on the land of another, to kill a fox or otter, which are beasts against the common profit. 11 H. VIII. 10. So, a house may be pulled down if the adjoining one be on fire, to prevent a greater destruction. 13 H. VIII. 16, b. Tua res agitur paries cum proximus ardet. So, the suburbs of a city may be demolished in time of war, for the good of the commonwealth. 8 Ed. IV. 35, b. So, a man may enter on his neighbor to make a bulwark in defense of the realm. 21 H. VIII. b. So, a house may be broken to arrest a felon. 13 Ed. IV. 9, a; Dodd. Eng. Lawy. 219, 220. In a civil action, a man may justify a libel or slanderous words, by proving their truth or because the defendant had a right, upon the particular occasion, either to write and publish the writing or to utter the words; as, when slanderous words are found in a report of a committee of congress or in an indictment or words of a slanderous nature are uttered during debate in the legislature by a member or at the bar, by counsel, when properly instructed by his client on the subject. See Debate; Slander; Comyn’s Digest (A digest of the laws of England, 1822) Pleader, 2 L 3 to 2 L 7.
Other Aspects
In general, justification must be specially pleaded and it cannot be given in evidence under the plea of the general issue.
More Information
When the plea of justification is supported by the evidence, it is a complete bar to the action. Vide Excuse. [1][rtbs name=”history-of-english-law”]
Resources
Notes and References
- Partialy, this information about justification is based on the Bouvier´s Law Dictionary, 1848 edition. There is a list of terms of the Bouvier´s Law Dictionary, including justification.