Ala. Pattern Jury Instr. (Criminal) 13A-2-6

MISTAKE

To convict, the State, in addition to the elements of the crime charged, must prove

beyond a reasonable doubt that at the time of the commission of the alleged crime, the

defendant was not acting under a mistaken belief:

(1) of fact which negates the culpable mental state required for the commission

of the crime; (OR)

(2) of fact which supports a defense of justification, such as [state appropriate

example of justification defense]; (OR)

(3) founded upon an official statement of the law:

a) contained in a statute; (OR)

b) contained in the latest judicial decision of the highest state or federal

court which decided the matter, that such conduct, as a matter of

law, did not constitute a crime; (OR)

(4) of law, which is relevant to disprove the specific state of mental culpability

required by the statute under whi ch he/she is being prosecuted. The

defendant’s mistaken belief of law must be other than as to the existence or

meaning of the statute under which he/she is being prosecuted.

[Adopted 09-19-14.]