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to immunize

to immunize

3 7.2
To legally protect a person from criminal charges, often in return for their testimony
  • verb
  • /ɪˈmjunˌaɪz/
  • Formal
translation icon : otorgar inmunidad
  • Most notably, the doctrine is inconsistent and underinclusive, and police officers are often immunized from liability.

Examples

  • Some states already had laws on the books that allowed pharmacists to immunize people, even if these provisions were rarely used.

    Blog text (24)
  • Likewise, police officers are immunized against prosecution.

    Blog text (1)
  • And now that we can immunize them, we can provide immunity to them, we're gonna encourage them to do it.

  • However, as seen in Novalogic, a virtual trademark does not immunize product owners against First Amendment claims.

    Academic text (2016)
  • Not necessarily, but the entrenched parties have created a system that immunizes them from accountability and competition.

    Academic text (2007)
  • Persistent offenders were virtually immunized from questioning on any charge because they were already likely to be represented by counsel on some pending matter.

    Academic text (1993)
  • When California voters considered decriminalizing marijuana in 2010, the Obama administration reminded them of Raich's lesson: state legalization did not immunize against federal law.

    Academic text (2014)
  • On January 1, 2014, a law went into effect in California—a state that has been criticized for making it too easy for parents to avoid immunizing their children—that made it more difficult for parents to obtain a personal-belief exemption for their children.

    Academic text (2016)
  • The prosecutor agreed to immunize the witness in exchange for her valuable testimony against the suspect.

  • To ensure cooperation, the attorney sought to immunize the informant from any charges related to the case.

How Protected

to immunize
  • Formal
3 7.2
to pardon
  • Formal
92 3.9
to charge
  • Formal
933 4.2
to prosecute
354 6.1

Surface Forms

immunize infinitive
immunised past
immunized past
immunised past participle
immunized past participle
immunizing present participle
immunises third person singular
immunizes third person singular

Morphology

immunize = immune (transparent) = immune + ize

Legal sense is expressed as 'to make (someone) immune' from prosecution; the formation from 'immune' + '-ize' is straightforward.

Etymology

Immunize comes from the Latin immunis, meaning 'exempt' or 'free', and the English word immunity shows this same root. So, in law to immunize someone is to make them 'free' from legal action or from being taken to court.