amnesty

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amnesty

amnesty , in law, exemption from prosecution for criminal action. It signifies forgiveness and the forgetting of past actions. Amnesties are usually extended to a group of persons during a period of prolonged disorder or insurrection. The criminals are offered a promise of immunity from prosecution if they will abandon their unlawful activities. After a revolution or civil war the victorious side will often extend amnesty to the losers; e.g., the United States granted a qualified amnesty to the Confederate forces after the Civil War. An amnesty is distinguished from a pardon , which is an act of forgiveness after the criminal has already been convicted.

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amnesty

The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military | 2001 | Â© The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military 2001, originally published by Oxford University Press 2001. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

amnesty ˈæmnistē n. pl. -ies
1. an official pardon for people who have been convicted of political offenses: an amnesty for political prisoners | the new law granted amnesty to those who illegally left the country.

2. an undertaking by the authorities to take no action against specified offenses or offenders during a fixed period: a month-long weapons amnesty | under a temporary amnesty, a group of wounded guerrillas was allowed to leave.
v. -ies, -ied grant an official pardon to: the guerrillas would be amnestied and allowed to return to civilian life.

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