Legal Definitions - relative confession

A relative confession occurs when an individual admits to having committed an act or been involved in an event, but their admission is accompanied by additional statements that seek to qualify, justify, or mitigate their responsibility. Unlike an absolute or unqualified confession, a relative confession includes explanations, excuses, or circumstances that aim to lessen the perceived severity of the wrongdoing, shift some blame, or provide a reason for the actions taken.

• Example 1: During a police interview, a suspect admits to breaking into a store and taking items, but immediately adds, "I only did it because my family was evicted, and we had no food or shelter. I was desperate."

  Explanation: The suspect is making a relative confession. They admit to the act of breaking and entering and theft, but they qualify this admission with an explanation of extreme necessity and desperation, attempting to mitigate the perceived criminality or moral culpability of their actions.

• Example 2: A person is accused of assault. They tell investigators, "Yes, I punched him, but he had just threatened my younger sister and was coming at me aggressively. I was just trying to protect her."

  Explanation: This is a relative confession because the individual admits to the physical act of punching someone (the assault) but immediately provides a justification – self-defense and defense of another – to explain their actions and potentially excuse them under the law.

• Example 3: After a car accident, a driver tells the police, "I know I hit the other car, but I swerved because a deer suddenly jumped out in front of me, and I had no time to react."

  Explanation: The driver is offering a relative confession. They admit to causing the collision but qualify this admission with an explanation of an unavoidable external factor (the deer), suggesting the accident was not due to their negligence but rather an unforeseen circumstance.