Assessment of Criminal Liability for Artificial Intelligence in Emergency Situations or Legitimate Defense

Abbaszadeh Dibavar,, MohammadAli; Rajabi TajAmir,, Ebrahim; Akhtari, Sajad

doi:10.22034/api.2025.2081092.1606

Assessment of Criminal Liability for Artificial Intelligence in Emergency Situations or Legitimate Defense

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

MohammadAli Abbaszadeh Dibavar, ¹

Ebrahim Rajabi TajAmir, ²

Sajad Akhtari ³

¹ Department of Criminal Law and Criminology, Sav. C., Islamic Azad University, Saveh, Iran

² Department of Criminology, Amin Police University, Tehran, Iran

³ Department of Criminal Law and Criminology, Ka. C., Islamic Azad University, Karaj, Iran

10.22034/api.2025.2081092.1606

Abstract

Objective: This study aims to elucidate a framework for criminal liability regarding the decisions of autonomous artificial intelligence systems in sensitive situations involving self-defense and the state of necessity. The core issue lies in the inadequacy of traditional criminal liability models (based on human will and intent) as well as the limitations of novel approaches, such as foreseeability-based or risk-based liability, in addressing the complexity and self-learning capabilities of these systems.
Method: The research adopts a descriptive-analytical approach and utilizes a comparative study of advanced legal systems to analyze this challenge.
Results: The findings indicate that an effective solution requires moving beyond the "human or machine" dichotomy and adopting a multi-layered liability model. This model distributes responsibility across three distinct layers: the design and production layer (involving the moral and warranty liability of the designer), the operation and supervision layer (involving the precautionary and supervisory liability of the user), and the regulation and compensation layer (involving the warranty liability of the regulatory body and a compensation fund). This framework, while managing technological complexity and emphasizing ultimate human accountability, enables a fair analysis of incidents and facilitates the adaptation of self-defense and necessity criteria to algorithmic decisions.
Conclusions: Within the context of Iranian criminal law, this research highlights the necessity of moving beyond the existing "legislative paralysis" and proposes two pathways: the dynamic interpretation of existing legal institutions (such as liability arising from indirect causation) and proactive legislation based on the multi-layered model to ensure criminal justice and legal security. Consequently, the future of criminal law depends on embracing such flexible and distributed models to safeguard human dignity and the rule of law in the age of autonomous technologies.

Graphical Abstract

Keywords

Artificial intelligence

criminal liability

self-defense

state of emergency

multi-layered liability

Iranian criminal law

Subjects

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