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Article: Claims of right in theft and robbery prosecutions.(Florida)
- Article from:
- Florida Bar Journal
- Article date:
- November 1, 1999
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1999 Florida Bar. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Although often spoken of as a defense, claims of right are not affirmative defenses.
In theft(1) and robbery cases, "claim of right" refers to a claim by the defendant that he has some right to possess the property he took from the victim. There are two basic types of claims of right: a "specific" claim, i.e., a claim to possess the specific property taken; and a "debt" claim, i.e., a claim that the property taken will satisfy a debt the victim owes. A second distinction to be noted is that between an "actual" claim and a "good faith" claim. In the former, the defendant does have the right to possess the property taken, or the victim does owe the defendant a ...