Three other Unusual Criminal Defenses

During class, we learned about the twinkie and Affluenza strange criminal defenses and it seemed interesting. So, I decided to search for more.

The Mirror Defense:

• The mirror defense was used when a 27-year-old, in Malayasia, engaged in drug trafficking. At the time he was transporting 166 kilos of cannabis with 1.7 kilos of opium and was caught. The 27-year-old had an identical twin. The identical twin decided to pretend that he was his sibling and had also done the mirror. They ended up setting them both free because they couldn't figure out who was who. 

Being an Idiot:

• Being an idiot defense was used in 2002 by the founder of HealthSouth. The founder was charged for violating the "Sarbanes-Oxley Act (preventing corporations from scamming their shareholders)" and blamed by other directors in the same company. His lawyers decided to argue that he had no clue and was busy running the business that he forgot to attend to those matters such as simple accounting and trade deals. He was not found guilty because they couldn't figure out that he knew what was going on.  

The Matrix Defense:

• The Matrix Defense is the same as the "not guilty by reason of insanity defense, but it's actually so insane that it is noteworthy". This happened in July 2002 when an Ohio woman had fatally shot her landlady. Her lawyer argued that the woman thought her landlady was " part of a massive conspiracy to brainwash and murder her in a computer simulation". The jury decided that this was her idea that she thought she was "entitled to murder anyone who she felt threatened her in this alternate universe" and was found guilty by reason of mental defect. So, in this case the defense didn't work.

Sources
https://www.theblanchlawfirm.com/blog/five-of-the-most-unusual-criminal-defenses-that-actually-worked/