Selective prosecution

Selective prosecution (a term of jurisprudence) refers to a procedural defense via which a defendant may argue that they should not be held criminally liable for breaking the law, as the criminal justice system discriminated against them by choosing to prosecute. For example, a defendant might argue that, although they broke the law, people of different age, race, religion, sex, etc., were engaged in the same illegal actions for which the defendant is being tried and were not prosecuted, and that the defendant is only being prosecuted because of a bias. In the US, this defense is based upon the 14th Amendment, which requires that "nor [shall any state] deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."