Right of Self-defense in Maryland - Burden of Proof On Self-Defense

Burden of Proof On Self-Defense

Although self-defense is commonly called a "defense," a defendant who invokes self-defense in a criminal case in Maryland does not have the burden of proving that he or she acted in self-defense.

Instead, the defendant in a criminal case only has a burden of production on the issue of self-defense. This means that a defendant who wishes to invoke the doctrine only needs to "generate the issue" by introducing some evidence that he or she acted in self-defense. If the defendant satisfies that burden of production and thus generates the issue, then it is the prosecution that has the burden of proving that the defendant did not act in self-defense. In other words, once the defendant satisfies his or her burden of production on the issue of self-defense, then the prosecution has the burden of persuasion on the issue of self-defense.

If the defendant does not generate the issue of self-defense, then the prosecution does not have to prove that the defendant had not acted in self-defense.

The Court of Appeals of Maryland adopted these principles in the case of State v. Evans, 278 Md. 197, 207-08, 362 A.2d 629, 636 (1976). The Court said allocating the burdens of production and persuasion in this manner was required by the Supreme Court's decision in Mullaney v. Wilbur, 421 U.S. 684 (1975).

In civil cases, by contrast, self-defense remains a defense, meaning that the burden of proving its applicability is on the defendant. See Baltimore Transit Co. v. Faulkner, supra, 179 Md. at 600-01, 20 A.2d at 487.