Definition of mens rea
: criminal intent
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Recent Examples of mens rea from the Web
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ANONYMOUS Wrongdoing generally requires two elements: a guilty act, actus reus, and a guilty mind, mens rea.
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Most significantly, the government contends that Lee had the necessary mens rea — the criminal-intent element — to commit the felony retention offense.
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Reimer said when asked about concerns that mens rea reform would help companies evade regulatory charges.
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This time mens rea reform proponents have gone out of their way to enlist the support of left-leaning criminal-defense attorneys.
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The office of Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy, another Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, said any mens rea reform would need to be narrowly tailored, not comprehensive and retroactive.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'mens rea.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of mens rea
New Latin, literally, guilty mind
Law Dictionary
noun
\
ˈmenz-ˈrē-ə, -ˈrā-
\
legal Definition of mens rea
plural mentes reae
\ˈmen-ˌtēz-ˈrē-ˌē, ˈmen-ˌtās-ˈrā-ˌī\
: a culpable mental state;
especially
: one involving intent or knowledge and forming an element of a criminal offense
- murder contains a mens rea element
Origin and Etymology of mens rea
New Latin, literally, guilty mind
Learn More about mens rea
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See words that rhyme with mens rea Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about mens rea
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