corpus delicti
noun
cor·pus de·lic·ti ˈkȯr-pəs-di-ˈlik-ˌtī 
-(ˌ)tē
plural corpora delicti
1
: the substantial and fundamental fact necessary to prove the commission of a crime
2
: the material substance (such as the body of the victim of a murder) upon which a crime has been committed
Did you know?
Corpus delicti literally means "body of the crime" in Latin. In its original sense, the body in question refers not to a corpse but to the body of essential facts that, taken together, prove that a crime has been committed. In popular usage, corpus delicti also refers to the actual physical object upon which a crime has been committed. In a case of arson, it would be a ruined building; in a murder case, the victim's corpse.
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web As defense attorney Leroy Tozier noted, the prosecution had only produced a corpus — Jaconi’s actual corpse — and not the corpus delicti — the concrete evidence of guilt. 
David Reamer, Anchorage Daily News, 16 Aug. 2021
David Reamer, Anchorage Daily News, 16 Aug. 2021 Word History
Etymology
borrowed from New Latin corpus dēlictī "body of the misdeed"
First Known Use
1818, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Medical Definition
corpus delicti
noun
corpus de·lic·ti -di-ˈlik-ˌtī, -(ˌ)tē
plural corpora delicti
1
: the substantial and fundamental fact (as, in murder, actual death and its occurrence as a result of criminal agency) necessary to prove the commission of a crime
2
: the material substance (as the body of the victim of a murder) upon which a crime has been committed
Legal Definition
corpus delicti
noun
corpus de·lic·ti -di-ˈlik-ˌtī, -dā-, -tē
: the substance of a crime that the prosecutor must prove and that consists of an injury or loss (as death of a victim or disappearance of property) and the criminal act that resulted in it