Iowa

Iowa Criminal Jury Instructions CHAPTER 400 JUSTIFICATION 400.8 Victim’s Previous Bad Acts Or Character. Evidence has been received concerning (name of victim)’s [(acts of violence)(threats)(bad treatment) against defendant] [character for being (traits, e.g., quarrelsome, vicious)] in an effort to show that (name of victim) was a dangerous and violent person. This evidence bears on whether […]

Iowa Criminal Jury Instructions CHAPTER 400 JUSTIFICATION 400.7 Deadly Force – Duties. After using deadly force, the defendant had the following duties: 1. To not intentionally destroy, alter, conceal, or disguise physical evidence relating to the defendant’s use of deadly force; 2. To not intentionally intimidate a witness into refusing to cooperate with an investigation

Iowa Criminal Jury Instructions CHAPTER 400 JUSTIFICATION 400.6 Deadly Force – Presumptions. If you find that the defendant knew, or had reason to believe, any of the following at the time [he] [she] used deadly force, you must presume the defendant reasonably believed that deadly force was necessary to avoid injury or risk to [his]

Iowa Criminal Jury Instructions CHAPTER 400 JUSTIFICATION 400.5 Deadly Force – General Statement. The term “deadly force” means any of the following: 1. Force used to purposefully cause a serious injury, as defined in Instruction ____;* 2. Force that the defendant knew or should have reasonably known would create a strong probability that serious injury,

Iowa Criminal Jury Instructions CHAPTER 400 JUSTIFICATION 400.4 Provocation — Defense Not Available. If any of the following is true, the defendant’s use of force was not justified: 1. The defendant initially provoked the use of force against [himself][herself], intending to use it as an excuse to injure (name of victim). 2. The defendant initially

Iowa Criminal Jury Instructions CHAPTER 400 JUSTIFICATION 400.3 Justification — Defense Not Available. If any of the following is true, the defendant’s use of force was not justified: 1. The defendant did not have a reasonable belief that it was necessary to use force to prevent an injury or loss. 2. The defendant used unreasonable

Iowa Criminal Jury Instructions CHAPTER 400 JUSTIFICATION 400.2 No Duty to Retreat. A person who is not engaged in illegal activity has no duty to retreat from any place where the person is lawfully present before using force as described in these instructions. Authority Iowa Code section 704.1(3) State v. Baltazar, 935 N.W.2d 862 (Iowa

Iowa Criminal Jury Instructions CHAPTER 400 JUSTIFICATION 400.1 Justification – Definition – Reasonable Force – Burden of Proof. The defendant claims [he][she] was justified in using reasonable force to prevent [injury to a person, including the defendant] [the loss of defendant’s property, another’s property or public property] [the commission of a forcible felony]. The defendant