Other Definitions
irresistible impulse (dict)
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Irresistible ImpulseIn jurisprudence, irresistible impulse is a defense by excuse, in this case some sort of insanity, in which the defendant argues that they should not be held criminally liable for actions which broke the law, because they couldn't control their actions. In 1994, Lorena Bobbitt was found not guilty of a crime, when her defense argued that an irresistible impulse led her to cut off her husband's penis. The California Penal Code states (2002), "The defense of diminished capacity is hereby abolished ... there shall be no defense of ... diminished responsibility or irresistible impulse..."
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