Brett and his buddies Ralf, Hugh, and Kris decided to enact their own Spartan survival games. Their friend, Scott, was out of town, so they didn't include him in the games. They dressed up as Spartans, made crude weapons, and began to engage in battle. Scott showed up at home early and saw someone holding a crude knife to Brett, with Brett begging for mercy. Fearing for his friend's life (and not realizing his friends were play-acting), Scott turned the knife to the assailant, and only after he had mortally wounded him did he realize that it was Ralf. Scott is guilty of ______.
A
murder based on his intent to killD
involuntary manslaughterScott used force because he reasonably believed Brett faced an immediate deadly threat: he saw a knife held to Brett while Brett begged for mercy. A person may use necessary force to defend another, and a reasonable mistake about whether the danger is real can still justify that force. Since Scott did not know the scene was play-acting, he is not guilty of a crime on these facts.
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