4 canonical passages across 2 cases, quoted by 49 opinions in total. These passages cluster together because the same opinions keep quoting them side by side — they state parts of one doctrine. The anchor passage is from People v. Guajardo.
| # | Case | Flag | Canonical passage | Citers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | People v. Guajardo Anchor | green | “in general, a defendant does not act in justifiable self-defense when he or she uses excessive force or when the defendant is the initial aggressor.” | 19 |
| 2 | People v. Dupree | green | “once a defendant satisfies the initial burden of producing some evidence from which a jury could conclude that the elements necessary to establish a prima facie defense of self-defense exist, the prosecution bears the burden of disproving the affirmative defense of self-defense …” | 10 |
| 3 | People v. Dupree | green | “with the enactment of the self-defense act (sda), mcl 780.971 et seq., the legislature codified the circumstances in which a person may use deadly force in self-defense or in defense of another person without having the duty to retreat.” | 10 |
| 4 | People v. Guajardo | green | “a defendant does not act in justifiable self-defense when he or she uses excessive force or when the defendant is the initial aggressor.” | 10 |
A red or yellow flag on a member means the underlying case has negative treatment — for those, check the case page before relying on the passage.