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Thursday, February 18, 2021

The Meaning of "Corpus Delicti"

Corpus Delicti literally means "body of the crime" in Latin. In its original sense, the body in question refers not to a corpse but to the body of essential facts that, taken together, prove that a crime has been committed. In popular usage, corpus delicti also refers to the actual physical object upon which a crime has been committed. In a case of arson, it would be a burned building; in a murder case, the victim's corpse.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary 

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