Definition of duress To secure an acquittal on the basis of duress, an accused must call evidence that: A threat of death or serious injury was made to the accused or a member of their family; The gravity of the threat was such that a person of ordinary firmness and of the accused’s sex and maturity would have yielded in the way the accused did; That the accused performed the alleged criminal acts because of the threat; The accused did not have the chance to render the threat ineffective. Read More Info on The Defence of Duress in NSW