Noun
extenuating circumstance (plural extenuating circumstances)
(law, or general usage, chiefly in the plural) Any fact that mitigates or lessens a crime.
Synonyms: attenuating circumstance, mitigating circumstance, mitigating factor
Antonyms: aggravating circumstance, aggravating factor, aggravation
No excuses ever, for anyone; that is my principle at the outset. I deny the good intention, the respectable mistake, the indiscretion, the extenuating circumstance. With me there is no giving of absolution or blessing. Albert Camus