This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Learn more

Got it!

entrapment

Entrapment is an affirmative defense where a defendant claims that law enforcement or a state agent induced them to commit a criminal act they otherwise would not have committed. 

States vary in how they define and apply the entrapment defense through statutes and case law . Under the subjective test, which is used in many jurisdictions , two elements must typically be shown:

1. The defendant lacked a predisposition to commit the crime .
2. The government induced the defendant to commit it.

See e.g., Fla. Stat. § 777.201 , Jacobson v. United States, 503 U.S. 540 (1992) and Munoz v. State, 629 So. 2d 90 (Fla. 1993) .

See also: The Entrapment Defense in Criminal Law Cases by Justia

[Last reviewed in July of 2025 by the Wex Definitions Team
] 

Wex

• CIVICS

• civil rights

• THE LEGAL PROCESS

• courts

• criminal law

• criminal procedure

• evidence

• wex definitions

• criminal law and procedure

• government

• legal education and practice