The Illustrated Guide to Criminal Law
Chapter 11: Excuse Me!
Excuse pg 8: Elements of the Provocation Defense
Fred was charged with murdering the plumber. At trial, he asserted a provocation defense, claiming that he was in a murderous rage for a damn good reason, and so he must therefore be excused.
Fred in the witness box, making his case.
FRED
It’s not that I was insane at the time,
just that you can’t blame me for reacting the way I did!
So he’s going to need the jury to believe that:
(1) The plumber provoked him,
(2) into a passion that overcame his reason,
(3) He killed in the heat of that passion, and
(4) A “reasonable person” in that situation would have been just as provoked.