Legal Definitions - clerical misprision

Definition: Clerical misprision is a legal term that refers to the failure of a person in a position of authority to report a crime or wrongdoing that they have knowledge of. It is similar to misprision, but specifically applies to those in a clerical or administrative role.

Example: If a church secretary knows that a priest has been sexually abusing children but fails to report it to the authorities, they could be charged with clerical misprision.

Explanation: This example illustrates how a person in a clerical role, such as a church secretary, can be held responsible for not reporting a crime they have knowledge of. In this case, the crime is sexual abuse of children by a priest. The secretary's failure to report the crime could be considered clerical misprision.