guilty mind
Intentional wrongdoing mindset
Guilty mind is the English translation of *mens rea*, the legal principle that criminal liability requires not just a harmful act but a culpable mental state.
A person who accidentally causes harm lacks the guilty mind that distinguishes crime from misfortune.
The concept appears in discussions of criminal law and legal philosophy: Without a guilty mind, there can be no murder—only manslaughter or accident.
- mens reaBlameworthy mental state
- self-reproachBlaming oneself for wrongdoing
- remorseGuilt for wrongdoing
- tortured soulOne in profound anguish
- free willAutonomous choice capacity
conscience · moral conflict · premeditation · moral judgment · shame · accountability · moral agency · malice aforethought · ethical dilemmas · moral responsibility · determinism · mitigating circumstances · justice · willfulness · blameworthiness · conspiracy · accessory · compunction
- criminal lawcrime, felony, misdemeanor, murder, robbery
- criminal defensesinsanity plea, insanity defense, legal insanity, diminished capacity, mental incapacity
- criminal intentmens rea, criminal intent, intent, malice aforethought, premeditation
guilty mindclear conscience
Freedom from moral guilt
innocence · blamelessness · guiltlessness · pure heart · clean hands
guilty mindaccident
Unintended harmful event
inadvertence · strict liability · no fault · negligence · recklessness
guilty mindlack of intent
Without purposeful design
accident · accidental · inadvertence · good faith · honest mistake
guilty, guilt, guiltily, guiltiness, guiltless, guilts, mind, minds, minded