Psychological Aspects of the Legality of Causing Harm in Necessary Defense

Introduction: The relevance of the research topic is due to the problematic issues of qualification of an act in necessary defense. The article examines the importance of a more detailed consideration of the mental state of the defender when causing harm. The purpose of the work is to substantiate the need to take measures aimed at improving the correct assessment of the mental state of a person by a law enforcement officer. In this regard, it is proposed to improve the literacy of investigators and interrogators in the field of psychology. Scientific analysis of the problem of assessing the mental state of the defender is carried out by the method of analysis and synthesis, comparative legal method, interdisciplinary approach. As a result of the study, the author comes to the conclusion that causing harm in necessary defense is a situation that requires special attention to the mental state of a person. Some points are also highlighted, such as causing harm in imaginary defense, the suddenness of the attack, which are markers of the correctness of the assessment of the mental state of the defender. It is proposed to assign a more important role in the training of law students to the discipline — legal psychology.