Corpus Delicti

Pronunciation: /ˈkɔːrpəs dɪˈlɪktaɪ/

Definitions of corpus delicti

noun the body of evidence or facts that prove a crime has been committed

Example Sentences

A1 The police found the corpus delicti at the crime scene.

A2 The prosecutor needed to establish the corpus delicti before proceeding with the case.

B1 The defense attorney argued that without the corpus delicti, there was no proof of a crime.

B2 The forensic team analyzed the corpus delicti to gather evidence for the trial.

C1 The judge ruled that the corpus delicti presented by the prosecution was admissible in court.

C2 The defense lawyer challenged the validity of the corpus delicti, leading to a heated debate in the courtroom.

Examples of corpus delicti in a Sentence

formal The prosecution must establish the corpus delicti before proceeding with the trial.

informal They need to prove the corpus delicti first before anything else.

slang Gotta show the corpus delicti to move forward with the case.

figurative Without the corpus delicti, the case is like a ship without a sail.

Grammatical Forms of corpus delicti

• plural: corpora delicti
• comparative: more corpus delicti
• superlative: most corpus delicti
• present tense: corpus delicti
• future tense: will be corpus delicti
• perfect tense: has been corpus delicti
• continuous tense: is being corpus delicti
• singular: corpus delicti
• positive degree: corpus delicti
• infinitive: to be corpus delicti
• gerund: being corpus delicti
• participle: corpus delicti

Origin and Evolution of corpus delicti

First Known Use: 1601 year

Language of Origin: Latin

Story behind the word: The term 'corpus delicti' originates from Latin, where 'corpus' means body and 'delicti' means offense or crime.

Evolution of the word: Originally used in the legal context to refer to the physical evidence of a crime, the term has evolved to also encompass the idea of the basic facts necessary to prove that a crime has been committed, even in the absence of physical evidence.