Which term concerns the wrongful institution of criminal proceedings by a private citizen against another, resulting in damages?

Which term concerns the wrongful institution of criminal proceedings by a private citizen against another, resulting in damages?

• A. False imprisonment
• B. Tort
• C. Negligence
• D. Malicious Prosecution

Answer: (D)

Malicious prosecution is the civil wrong that fits this scenario: a private individual starts a criminal or baseless legal action against someone else, doing so without probable cause and with improper motive, which ends up causing damages to the other person. The key idea is wrongful initiation of legal proceedings by a non-state actor that harms the person targeted—not merely a failure to act carefully or the harm from confinement. False imprisonment describes unlawfully deten­ing someone’s liberty, and a general tort or negligence covers broader harms or careless conduct, but neither captures the specific wrongful act of initiating unjust proceedings against another.

Malicious prosecution is the civil wrong that fits this scenario: a private individual starts a criminal or baseless legal action against someone else, doing so without probable cause and with improper motive, which ends up causing damages to the other person. The key idea is wrongful initiation of legal proceedings by a non-state actor that harms the person targeted—not merely a failure to act carefully or the harm from confinement. False imprisonment describes unlawfully deten­ing someone’s liberty, and a general tort or negligence covers broader harms or careless conduct, but neither captures the specific wrongful act of initiating unjust proceedings against another.