Biological defense
In
jurisprudence, a
biological defense is a so-called "
innovative defense"; via which, a
defendant argues that they should not be held
criminally liable for
actionss which broke the
law, as they were suffering from the effects of
allergies, stimulants (such as
coffee and
nicotine),
sugar, and/or
vitamins. In
1978, Dan White shot the
mayor of
San Francisco, Mascone; as well as a
city councilman,
Harvey Milk. After White's defense argued that he had consumed sugar, contained in
Coca-Cola and Twinkies, White was given a mitigated
sentence. This
case led to the term "
Twinkie defense", but contrary to popular belief, White's defense argued not that the consumption of twinkies
caused mental instability, but rather that this consumption was unusual for him and
reflected already existing mental instability.