Also known as: avowtry · avoutrie · avoutery · adultery
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An archaic common-law term for sexual intercourse by a married person with someone other than the spouse. Discovery of the act supplies adequate provocation that can reduce an intentional killing from murder to voluntary manslaughter when the remaining elements of heat of passion are also present.
Marco watches a live security feed showing his wife engaged in intercourse with Leo inside an instrument room. He rushes to a nearby hangar, seizes a heavy tool, and strikes Leo fatally on the head. The killing occurred in sudden passion upon discovery of avoutry before any reasonable cooling period elapsed.
Carla enters the stockroom and finds her partner Elena with Dorothy in an intimate act. She immediately grabs a metal rod and strikes Dorothy fatally. The direct observation of avoutry supplies the provocation that a jury must weigh against any claimed cooling interval.
Russell opens a supply-room door and sees Leonard groping his spouse against the wall. After a brief confrontation he shoves Leonard down stairs causing death. The sight of the intimate violation functions as avoutry provocation that the factfinder must evaluate for objective reasonableness.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Daisy enters a conference room and sees her partner Bill in an unmistakable intimate embrace with another employee. She retrieves a trophy, pauses briefly at her desk, then returns and strikes Bill fatally. The visual discovery of avoutry raises the question whether the short interval permitted cooling.
Daisy sees her long-term partner Bill embracing another employee at a company product-launch party. She leaves the room, obtains a trophy, and returns within minutes to deliver a fatal blow. The act of avoutry supplies the predicate provocation whose adequacy a jury must decide.
Claudia and Bobby argue on an unguarded platform after Bobby criticizes her work. She shoves him to his death. Although the facts involve no avoutry, the absence of that classic provocation category helps determine whether mere words can ever suffice.
Avoutry is the archaic term for adultery. It denotes sexual intercourse by a married person with someone other than the spouse.
Supporting sources
At common law, discovery of a spouse in the act of avoutry constitutes adequate provocation as a matter of law. When the killing occurs in the heat of passion before a reasonable cooling-off period, malice is negated and the offense becomes voluntary manslaughter.
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No. Common law requires direct observation of the spouse in the act. A second-hand report is treated as mere words and is legally inadequate to reduce murder to voluntary manslaughter.
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The killing must occur before an objectively reasonable person would have cooled. Brief intervals measured in minutes may still support the reduction if the facts show the passion remained unabated.
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…371 U. S. 415, 438. The State of Connecticut does have statutes, the constitutionality of which is beyond doubt, which prohibit adultery and fornication. See Conn. Gen. Stat. §§ 53-218, 53-219 et seq. These statutes demonstrate that means for achieving the same basic purpose of protecting marital fidelity are available to…