A  defence of duress is used when a person admits fully that they committed a crime, but that they did so because they were under immediate physical threat if the act was not committed.

     The Threat
These types of  threats must be ‘present and continuing,  imminent and impending’. You can’t just be scared; you must be under threat.

     The Defence
If this defence is raised, it is therefore the job of the prosecution to prove that this isn’t true, and that no such duress existed or was applied in the way the accused says it did.

All criminal  charges can use this defence except murder in most  circumstances (there are still some murder charges that this defence can be used).

Under The Crimes Act 1958, certain provisions apply for this defence. It more or less states that the accused individual had to carry out the act under threat of harm, it was a reasonable response, and the threat was to actually be carried out.