Abuse Defense Law and Legal Definition

Abuse defense refers to criminal law defense that permits the defendants to argue that the defendant should not be held criminally liable for breaking the law as the defendant was abused or ill-treated. Here, the defendant uses abuse of some nature from the plaintiff’s side as a provocation to commit the crime. This represents a specialized version of excuse of self-defense or the exculpation of provocation. This term is also known as innovative defense.