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Well word gets around in a small, small town They said he was a dangerous man But mama was proud and she stood her ground But she knew she was on the losing end. Some folks whispered and some folks talked But everybody looked the other way And when time ran out there was no one about On Independence Day.
Abstract: This article contends that there are compelling reasons for reconceptualising the contours of self-defence, and for the introduction of a bespoke partial defence complemented by jury directions and the admissibility of social framework evidence to assist vulnerable offenders who kill their abusers in a desperate attempt to protect themselves. The New Zealand Law Commission in 2016 recently recommended, inter alia, that self-defence be re-categorised and broadened to allow victims of family violence who kill to potentially claim a defence in the absence of an imminent threat of harm, standardised on an “all or nothing” perspective. In truth, a far wider contextualisation needs to apply, beyond the limited and constrained terms of reference before the Commission. The contours of self-defence applicability ought to extend to extra-familial vulnerable offenders, encompassing individuals subjected to human traffi cking and/ or modern slavery, those trapped by ostensible gang membership, and those experiencing third-party abuse who respond with lethal force. It is our assertion, after a comparative review of the theoretical and doctrinal precepts of a number of alternative legal systems, that the full and partial defence schema should be more nuanced. Extant laws fail to appropriately recognise the need for a de novo partial defence template and refl ective individuated culpability thresholds.
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