Crossword Genius

State group - it's defended by law officers briefly

Ross

I believe the answer is:

bodypolitic

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'state' is the definition.
(synonyms)

'group it's defended by law officers briefly' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'group' could be 'body' (body can mean an organisation or group) and 'body' is located in the answer.
'it' could be 't' (abbreviation. e.g. in 'tis) and 't' is located in the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

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I've seen this clue in The Daily Mail.
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