Legal Topics > Criminal Law >

Nolo's Plain-English Law Dictionary

Legal Dictionary Home

Need Professional Help? Talk to a Lawyer
Enter Your Zip Code to Connect with a Lawyer Serving Your Area
searchbox small
Mercy Rule (Character Evidence Admissibility)
A rule of evidence that permits a criminal defendant to offer relevant character evidence as a defense to a criminal charge. Character evidence under the mercy rule is usually offered in the form of opinions from the defendant


Need Legal Help?
Get Informed Check out our thousands of free articles on everyday legal topics--they're accurate, up to date, and written in plain English.
Do It Yourself With Nolo's easy-to-use books, legal forms, online services, and software, you can handle many routine legal tasks yourself.
Talk to a Lawyer Just enter your zip code to connect with a lawyer serving your area.
LA-WS5:0.9.22.120522.13848+