Murder

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This article is about fatal harm. For other uses, see Murder (disambiguation).

Paul Cézanne\'s The Murder

Crimes
Classes of crime
Infraction  · Misdemeanor  · Felony
Summary  · Indictable  · Hybrid
Against the person
Assault  · Battery
Extortion  · Harassment
Kidnapping  · Identity theft
(Corporate) Manslaughter
Murder  · Rape
Robbery
Against property
Arson  · Blackmail
Burglary  · Deception
Embezzlement  · False pretenses
Fraud  · Handling
Larceny  · Theft
Vandalism
Against the public order
Drug possession
Against the state
Tax evasion
Espionage  · Treason
Against justice
Bribery  · Misprision of felony
Obstruction  · Perjury
Malfeasance in office
Inchoate offenses
Accessory  · Attempt
Conspiracy  · Incitement
Solicitation  · Common purpose
Note: Crimes vary by jurisdiction. Not all are listed here.

Homicide
Murder
Assassination Child murder Consensual homicide Contract killing Felony murder Honour killing Human sacrifice Lust murder Lynching Mass murder Murder-suicide Proxy murder Ritual murder Serial killer Spree killer Torture murder
Manslaughter
in English law Negligent homicide Vehicular homicide
Non-criminal homicide
Justifiable homicide Capital punishment
Other types of homicide
Avunculicide Deicide Democide Familicide Femicide Feticide Filicide Fratricide Gendercide Genocide Infanticide Mariticide Matricide Parricide Patricide Prolicide Regicide Sororicide Suicide Tyrannicide Uxoricide Viricide Vivicide
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Murder is the unlawful killing of a human person with malice aforethought, as defined in Common Law countries. Murder is generally distinguished from other forms of homicide by the elements of malice aforethought and the lack of lawful justification. All jurisdictions, ancient and modern, consider it a most serious crime. Most jurisdictions impose a severe penalty for its commission.

Contents 1 Legal Analysis of Murder 2 Origins 2.1 Background 2.2 Common law 2.3 Codification 3 Legal definition 3.1 Basic elements 3.2 Exclusions 3.3 Victim 3.4 Mitigating circumstances 3.4.1 Insanity 3.4.2 Post-partum depression 3.4.3 Self defense 3.4.4 Unintentional 3.4.5 Diminished capacity 3.5 Year-and-a-day rule 3.5.1 Abolition of the rule 4 Demographics 5 Country-specific murder law 5.1 Australia 5.2 Canada 5.2.1 First and second degree 5.2.2 Manslaughter and infanticide 5.2.3 Penalties 5.2.4 Statistics 5.3 Finland 5.4 France 5.5 Germany 5.5.1 Penalties 5.5.2 Felony murder 5.5.3 Robbery with deadly outcome 5.5.4 Attempted suicide 5.6 Hong Kong 5.6.1 Murder 5.6.2 Attempted Murder 5.6.3 Manslaughter 5.6.4 Act against infant 5.6.5 Suicide 5.7 Israel 5.8 Italy 5.9 The Netherlands 5.10 Norway 5.10.1 Categories of murder 5.10.2 Other forms of murder 5.11 Romania 5.11.1 Degrees of murder 5.12 Switzerland 5.13 United Kingdom 5.14 United States 5.14.1 Degrees of murder in the United States 5.14.2 Fetal homicide in the United States 5.15 Vikings (8th to 11th centuries) 6 Documentary films 7 References 7.1 Other references 8 See also 9 External links

Legal Analysis of Murder

To repeat, a common law murder is defined as the unlawful killing of a human person with malice aforethought. Malice aforethought exists if the defendant acts with any of the following states of mind:

(i) Intent to kill; (ii) Intent to inflict serious bodily harm; (iii) Reckless indifference to an unjustifiably high risk to human life (abandoned and malignant heart); or (iv) Intent to commit a felony (felony-murder doctrine).

Under element (i) intent to kill, the deadly weapon rule applies. Thus, if the defendant intentionally uses a deadly weapon or instrument against the victim, such use authorizes a permissive inference of intent to kill. An example of a deadly weapon or instrument is a gun, a knife, or even a car when intentionally used to strike the victim.

Under element (iii) abandoned and malignant heart, the killing must result from defendant\'s conduct involving a reckless indifference to human life and a conscious disregard of an unreasonable risk of death or serious bodily injury. An example of this is a 2007 law in California where an individual could be convicted of second-degree murder if he or she kills another person while operating a motor vehicle while being under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or controlled substances.

Under element (iv) felony-murder doctrine, the felony committed must be an inherently dangerous felony, such as burglary, arson, rape, robbery or kidnapping. Importantly, the underlying felony cannot be a lesser-included offense such as assault, otherwise all homicides would be murder as all homicides are felonies.

Origins

Background

The neutrality of this section is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page. This section has been tagged since January 2008.

One of the oldest known prohibitions against murder appears in the Sumerian Code of Ur-Nammu written sometime between 2100 and 2050 BC. The code states, "If a man commits a murder, that man must be killed."

In Abrahamic religions, the prohibition against murder is one of the Ten Commandments given by God to Moses in (Exodus: 20v13) and (Deuteronomy 5v17) (See Murder in the Bible). The Vulgate and subsequent early English translations of the bible used the term secretly killeth his neighbor or smiteth his neighbour secretly rather than murder for the Latin clam percusserit proximum.Vulgate Deuteronomy Ch27 V24Parallel Hebrew Old Testament Deuteronomy Ch27 V24

Later editions such as Young\'s Literal Translation and the World English Bible have translated the Latin occides simply as murder rather than the alternatives of kill, assassinate, fall upon or slay. Parallel Hebrew Old Testament Exodus ch20v13

Christian churches have some doctrinal differences about what forms of homicide are prohibited biblically, though all agree murder is.

Common law

According to Blackstone, English common law identified murder as a Public Wrong. Blackstone, Book 4, Chapter 14

Codification

The crime of murder was often formally codified after democratic reform in various jurisdictions, legislatures began passing statutes.

Legal definition

As with most legal terms, the precise definition of murder varies between jurisdictions and is usually codified in some form of legislation.

In some jurisdictions, murder is a common law crime, considered so wrong that there is no need for any legislation to define it. In such jurisdictions, precedent Case law or previous decisions of the Courts of Law defines what is considered murder.

Basic elements

In common law jurisdictions, murder has two elements or parts:

1. the act (actus reus) of killing a person
2. the state of mind (mens rea) of intentional, purposeful, malicious, premeditated, and/or wanton.

While murder is often expressed as the unlawful killing of another human being with "malice aforethought", this element of malice may not be required in every jurisdiction (for example, see the French definition of murder below).

• The element of malice aforethought can be satisfied by an intentional killing, which is considered express malice.
• Malice can also be implied: deaths that occur by extreme recklessness or during certain serious crimes are considered to be express malice murders.

Exclusions

• Unlawful killings without malice or intent are considered manslaughter.
• Justified or accidental killings are considered homicides. Depending on the circumstances, these may or may not be considered criminal offenses.
• Suicide is not considered murder in most societies. Because the offender and the victim being one and the same precludes a fair trial of the offender, however, assisting a suicide may be considered murder in some circumstances.
• Capital punishment ordered by a legitimate court of law as the result of a conviction in a criminal trial with due process for a serious crime.
• Killing of enemy combatants by lawful combatants in accordance with lawful orders in war, although illicit killings within a war may constitute murder or homicidal war crimes. (see the Laws of war article)

Victim

All jurisdictions require that the victim be a natural person; that is a human being who was still alive at the time of being murdered. Most jurisdictions legally distinguish killing a fetus or unborn child as a different crime, such as illegal abortion of a fetus or the unlawful killing of an unborn child. The distinction between a fetus and an unborn child in these jurisdictions is that a child could survive if it had been born, while a fetus could not.^{[citation needed]}

Mitigating circumstances

Some countries allow conditions that "affect the balance of the mind" to be regarded as mitigating circumstances. This means that a person may be found guilty of "manslaughter" on the basis of "diminished responsibility" rather than murder, if it can be proved that the killer was suffering from a condition that affected their judgment at the time. Depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and medication side-effects are examples of conditions that may be taken into account when assessing responsibility.

Insanity

Mental disorder may apply to a wide range of disorders including psychosis caused by schizophrenia and dementia, and excuse the person from the need to undergo the stress of a trial as to liability. In some jurisdictions, following the pre-trial hearing to determine the extent of the disorder, the defense of "not guilty by reason of insanity" may be used to get a not guilty verdict. R. v. M\'Naughten, get full cite. This defense has two elements:

1. That the defendant had a serious mental illness, disease, or defect.
2. That the defendant\'s mental condition, at the time of the killing, rendered the perpetrator unable to determine right from wrong, or that what he or she was doing was wrong. ..

Under New York law, for example:

§ 40.15 Mental disease or defect. In any prosecution for an offense, it is an affirmative defense that when the defendant engaged in the proscribed conduct, he lacked criminal responsibility by reason of mental disease or defect. Such lack of criminal responsibility means that at the time of such conduct, as a result of mental disease or defect, he lacked substantial capacity to know or appreciate either: 1. The nature and consequences of such conduct; or 2. That such conduct was wrong.

Under the French Penal Code:

ARTICLE 122-1

• A person is not criminally liable who, when the act was committed, was suffering from a psychological or neuropsychological disorder which destroyed his discernment or his ability to control his actions.
• A person who, at the time he acted, was suffering from a psychological or neuropsychological disorder which reduced his discernment or impeded his ability to control his actions, remains punishable; however, the court shall take this into account when it decides the penalty and determines its regime.

Those who successfully argue a defense based on a mental disorder are usually referred to mandatory clinical treatment until they are certified safe to be released back into the community, rather than prison. CODE DE LA SANTE PUBLIQUE Chapitre III : Hospitalisation d\'office Article L3213-1 (fr). Legifrance (2002). Retrieved on 2007-10-23., note: this text refer to the procedure of Involuntary commitment by the demand of the public authority, but the prefect systematically use that procedure whenever a man is discharged due to his dementia.

Post-partum depression

Some countries, such as Canada, Italy, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia, allow post-partum depression (also known as post-natal depression) as a defense against murder of a child by a mother, provided that a child is less than a year old (this may be the specific offense of infanticide rather than murder and include the effects of lactation and other aspects of post-natal care).^{[citation needed]}

Self defense

Acting in self defense or in defense of another person is generally accepted as legal justifications for killing a person in situations that would otherwise have been murder. However, a self defense killing might be considered manslaughter if the killer established control of the situation before the killing took place. In the case of self-defense it is called a justifiable homicide. The French Parliemant. ARTICLE 122-5 (fr). French Criminal Law. Legifrance. Retrieved on 2007-11-01.

Unintentional

For a killing to be considered murder, there normally needs to be an element of intent. For this argument to be successful the killer generally needs to demonstrate that they took precautions not to kill and that the death could not have been anticipated or was unavoidable, whatever action they took. As a general rule, manslaughterThe French Parliemant. Article 222-8. French Criminal Law. Legifrance. Retrieved on 2007-11-01. constitutes reckless killing, while criminally negligent homicide is a grossly negligent killing.The French Parliemant. Section II - Involuntary Offences Against Life. French Criminal Law. Legifrance. Retrieved on 2007-11-01.

Diminished capacity

In those jurisdictions using the Uniform Penal Code, such as California, diminished capacity may be a defense. For example, Dan White used this defense (the so-called "Twinkie defense). to obtain a manslaughter conviction, instead of murder, in the assassination of Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk.^[citation needed]

Year-and-a-day rule

Main article: Year and a day rule

In some common law jurisdictions, a defendant accused of murder is not guilty if the victim survives for longer than one year and one day after the attack. This reflects the likelihood that if the victim dies, other factors will have contributed to the cause of death, breaking the chain of causation. Subject to any statute of limitations, the accused could still be charged with an offense representing the seriousness of the initial assault.

Abolition of the rule

With advances in modern medicine, most countries have abandoned a fixed time period and test causation on the facts of the case.

In the UK, due to medical advancements, the "year-and-a-day-rule" is no longer in use. However, if the death occurs three years after the original attack, then the Attorney-General\'s approval/permission will need to be granted before prosecutions can take place after a three year period has expired.

In the United States, many jurisdictions have abolished the rule as well. Abolition of the rule has been accomplished by enactment of statutory criminal codes, which had the effect of displacing the common-law definitions of crimes and corresponding defenses. In 2001, the Supreme Court of the United States held that retroactive application of a state supreme court decision abolishing the year-and-a-day rule did not violate the Ex Post Facto Clause of Article I of the United States Constitution. Rogers v. Tennessee, 532 U.S. 451 (2001).

Demographics

An estimated 520,000 people were murdered in 2000 around the globe. Two-fifths of them were young people between the ages of 10 and 29 who were killed by other young people.WHO: 1.6 million die in violence annually

Murder rate per 100,000 inhabitants in 2004

Murder rates vary greatly among countries and societies around the world. In the Western world, murder rates in most countries have declined significantly during the 20th century and are now between 1-4 cases per 100,000 people per year. Murder rates in Japan, Ireland and Iceland are among the lowest in the world, around 0.5; the rate of the United States is among the highest of developed countries, around 5.5 in 2004,FBI web site with rates in larger cities sometimes over 40 per 100,000.Infoplease.com.

Within the Western world, nearly 90% of all murders are committed by males, with males also being the victims of 74.6% of murders (according the US Department of Justice). There is a sharp peak in the age distribution of murderers between the ages of 17 and 30. People become decreasingly likely to commit a murder as they age. Incidents of children and adolescents committing murders are also extremely rare, notwithstanding the strong media coverage such cases receive.

There are an estimated 55,000 murders in Brazil every yearBrazil murder rate similar to war zone, data shows, about 30,000 murders committed annually in Russia, approximately 25,000 murders in Colombia (in 2005, murders went down to 15,000Colombia\'s Uribe wins second term), approximately 20,000 murders each year in South Africa, approximately 17,000 murders in the United States (666,160 murders from 1960 to 1996)Twentieth Century Atlas - Homicide, approximately 15,000 murders in Mexico, approximately 11,000 murders in Venezuela, approximately 6,000 murders in El Salvador, approximately 1,600 murders in JamaicaJamaica \'murder capital of the world\', approximately 1000 murders in France, approximately 580 murders per year in CanadaCanada\'s National Statistical Agency:Homicides, and approximately 200 murders in Chile.Crime Statistics The murder rate in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea is 23 times that of London.Fickling, David. "Raskol gangs rule world\'s worst city", The Guardian, 2004-9-22. Retrieved on 2007-1-9. 

Murder demographics are affected by the improvement of trauma care, leading to reduced lethality of violent assaults - thus the murder rate may not necessarily indicate the overall level of social violence.Harris, Anthony R.; Stephen H. Thomas ; Gene A. Fisher ; David J. Hirsch (05 2002). "Murder and medicine: the lethality of criminal assault 1960-1999" (fee required). Homicide studies 6 (2): 128-166. Retrieved on 2006-12-08. 

Development of murder rates over time in different countries is often used by both supporters and opponents of capital punishment and gun control. Using properly filtered data, it is possible to make the case for or against either of these issues. For example, one could look at murder rates in the United States from 1950 to 2000,Disaster Center web site and notice that those rates went up sharply shortly after a moratorium on death sentences was effectively imposed in the late 1960s. This fact has been used to argue that capital punishment serves as a deterrent and, as such, it is morally justified. Capital punishment opponents frequently counter that the United States has much higher murder rates than Canada and most European Union countries, although all those countries have abolished the death penalty. Gun control advocates further point out that, unlike the United States, many European countries disallow gun ownership by private citizens but Switzerland has the least restrictive firearm laws and corresponding higher gun murder deaths. Canada introduced a comprehensive Firearms Certificate program in 1977, which was followed by a sharp decline in its homicide rate (and its firearm homicide rate) however firearm homicide rates have crept back up to pre-1977 levels by 2005 even though the overall rate remains less. Overall, the global pattern is too complex and, on average, the influence of both these factors may not be significant and could be more social, economic and cultural.

Country-specific murder law

Australia

Murder is defined in the New South Wales (NSW) Crimes Act 1900 as follows:

SECTION 18 1) a) Murder shall be taken to have been committed where the act of the accused, or thing by him or her omitted to be done, causing the death charged, was done or omitted with reckless indifference to human life, or with intent to kill or inflict grievous bodily harm upon some person, or done in an attempt to commit, or during or immediately after the commission, by the accused, or some accomplice with him or her, of a crime...CRIMES ACT 1900 - SECT 18 Murder and manslaughter defined

Under NSW law, the maximum penalty for murder is life imprisonment with a standard non-parole period of 20 years. Attempted murder (sections 27-30 of the Crimes Act) attracts a maximum penalty of 25 years imprisonment. Note that in order to be guilty of murder under the NSW Crimes Act, intent to cause grievous bodily harm is enough to secure a conviction for murder, as is \'felony murder\' (constructive murder in Australia).

There is a statutory defence of provocation in NSW law - Section 23 of the Crimes Act, if provocation is proven and the person would have otherwise been convicted of murder, directs the jury to find the defendant not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter. However, this is not the case in Victoria - the Crimes Act 1958 (VIC), in Section 3B, states:

The rule of law that provocation reduces the crime of murder to manslaughter is abolished.Crimes Act 1958 - SECT 3B Provocation no longer a partial defence to murder

Under Victorian law, it is illegal to kill, by unlawful means, an unborn child that is capable of being born alive. Crimes Act 1958 - SECT 10 Offence of child destruction This offence is termed \'child destruction\' in the Act. For example, if Person A assaulted Person B with intent to kill B\'s unborn child, Person A is guilty of child destruction and assault - and thus would be liable, under Victorian law to 15 years imprisonment for child destruction plus 5 years imprisonment for assault.

In any legislature within Australia, the maximum penalty for murder is life imprisonment. NSW law follows the \'life means life\' construction http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/ca190082/s19.html; therefore the maximum sentence is life without possibility of parole.

Canada

As defined in the Criminal Code of Canada, murder is considered one type of culpable homicide, distinguished from the offences of manslaughter or infanticide. Criminal Code of Canada, R.S., c. C-34, s. 205

First and second degree

In Canada, murder is classified as either first or second degree.Criminal Code of Canada, R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 231; R.S., 1985, c. 27 (1st Supp.), ss. 7, 35, 40, 185(F), c. 1 (4th Supp.), s. 18(F); 1997, c. 16, s. 3, c. 23, s. 8; 2001, c. 32, s. 9, c. 41, s. 9.

1. First degree murder is a murder which is (1) planned and deliberate, (2) contracted, (3) committed against an identified peace officer, (4) while committing or attempting to commit one of the following offences (hijacking an aircraft, sexual assault, sexual assault with a weapon, aggravated sexual assault, kidnapping and forcible confinement or hostage taking), (5) while committing criminal harassment, (6) committed during terrorist activity, (7) while using explosives in association with a criminal organization, or (8) while committing intimidation. Criminal Code
2. Second degree murder is all murder which is not first degree murder.

Manslaughter and infanticide

1. Manslaughter is any culpable homicide which is not murder or infanticide. To kill someone with a deadly weapon, or may or may not be so.Criminal Code of Canada, R.S., c. C-34, s. 217.

2. Infanticide is the killing of a newly-born child by its mother where the mother\'s mind was disturbed as a result of giving birth or of consequent lactation. It is a type of homicide but is excluded from murder.Criminal Code of Canada, R.S., c. C-34, s. 216.

Penalties

The maximum penalties for murder are:

1. first degree murder - mandatory life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for 25 years (can be paroled under the Faint-Hope Clause after 15 years imprisonment, but such a reduction is rarely given and is not available for multiple murders)
2. second degree murder - mandatory life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for 10-25 years (parole eligibility determined by the judge at sentencing) (exception: if the person had committed another murder in their past, parole eligibility is 25 years)

There is a clause where persons convicted of any "personal injury offence" meeting the statutory criteria to be declared a "dangerous offender." A dangerous offender is sentenced for an indeterminate period of imprisonment and is eligible for parole after serving at least 7 years. An offender convicted of 1st or 2nd degree murder is ineligible to be declared a dangerous offender. However, an offender convicted of manslaughter can be declared a dangerous offender.

Any sentence imposed in addition to a life sentence must be concurrent.

Statistics

In Canada there are about 2.6 attempted murders per 100,000 population in 2006. Statistics Canada Crimes by type of offence accessed 2007-12-19 Attempted murder carries the same consequences as murder itself; it is the intent, not the result, that determines the sentence.

In 2006 the homicide rate in Canada was 1.85 per 100,000 people or approximately 604 homicides per year. Of these victims, 442 were male, 162 were female.Statistics Canada Victims and persons accused of homicide, by age and sex (Victims) accessed 2007-12-19 The rate has remained close to stable for the past 10 years. This is equivalent to numbers in most of the western world, except the U.S. which has almost triple the number per capita.^{[citation needed]} The main methods of murder in Canada are shootings (30%), stabbings (30%), and beatings (22%).

About 170 Canadians homicides per year (excluding unsolved cases) are committed by a family member, of which 63 were by husbands, 16 by wives, 42 by parents, 19 by children and 9 by siblings. [http://www.statcan.ca/english/freepub/85-224-XIE/85-224-XIE2005000.pdf Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics Family Violence in Canada: A Statistical Profile (2005) Table 3.1 accessed 2007-12-19

One in six homicides in 2006 was gang related according to police reports.>Li, Geoffrey. Homicide in Canada, 2006 Statistics Canada ISSN 1209-6393About 75% of 2006 homicides in Canada had been caught by 2007.

Finland

In Finland, murder is defined as homicide with at least one of four aggravating factors:

1. Deliberate intent
2. Exceptional brutality or cruelty
3. Significantly endangering public safety
4. Committed against a public official engaged in enforcing the law.

Further, the offense considered as a whole must be aggravated. A murder doesn\'t expire.

The only possible punishment for murder is life imprisonment. Typically, the prisoner will be pardoned by the Helsinki Court of Appeals after serving 12 to 14 years of his sentence, but this is not automatic. The President can also give pardon, and previously this used to be the only possibility.

In jurisprudence, the comparison of an actual crime against "especially brutal or cruel way"-standard has been understood to mean comparison to "usual" homicide cases. In recent cases, the Finnish Supreme Court has not considered a single axe stroke on the head, or strangulation to be "especially brutal or cruel". On the other hand, causing death by jumping on a person\'s chest and head and firing over 10 times upon a person\'s torso have been considered to fulfill the standard.

The only sentence for murder is life in prison. Until 2006, this meant an actual life sentence which could be pardoned only by the president. However, since the 1960s presidents have regularly given pardons to practically all offenders after a period of 12-15 years. In 2006, the legislation was changed so that all life sentences are reviewed by an appellate court after they have been executed for 12 years. If the convict is still deemed a danger to society, his case will be reviewed every two years after this. Involuntary confinement to a psychiatric institution may also result, sometimes after the sentence is served. The involuntary treatment ends when the psychiatrist decides so, or when a court decrees it no longer necessary in a periodical review.

If the pre-requisites are not fulfilled, but the homicide has been deliberate and pre-meditated, the convict is sentenced for second degree murder (tappo) to a minimum of eight years in prison. There is also the crime of voluntary manslaughter (surma), which is a homicide under mitigating/extenuating circumstances, with the punishment of four to ten years. Involuntary manslaughter (kuolemantuottamus) has a maximum punishment of two years of imprisonment or fine (see day fine). Infanticide carries a punishment of at least four months and at most four years in prison.

France

In the French Penal Code murder is defined by the intentional killing of another person. There is no distinction between murder and manslaughter and both are punished by a minimum of 1 year (seen in case of euthanasia) Euthanasia doctor avoids prison. BBC (2007). Retrieved on 2007-10-23. Article 132-18. Legifrance. Retrieved on 2007-11-09. up to a maximum of 30 years of criminal imprisonment. Article 221-1. Legifrance. Retrieved on 2007-10-23. Assassination (murder with premeditation) Article 221-2. Legifrance. Retrieved on 2007-10-23. and murder in some special case (if the victim is under 15, parents, child, people with disabilities, police officer etc.) Article 221-3. Legifrance. Retrieved on 2007-10-23. are punished by a jail time up to life imprisonment. In France except for recidivist The French Parliament. LOI n° 2007-1198 du 10 août 2007 renforçant la lutte contre la récidive des majeurs et des mineurs (fr). French Criminal Law. Legifrance. Retrieved on 2007-11-01. the minimum sentence in criminal prosecution is one year of imprisonment, imprisonment which may be suspended if the term of the sentence is under 5 years. The French Parliament. Paragraph 1 - Conditions for the granting of ordinary suspension. French Criminal Law. Legifrance. Retrieved on 2007-11-01.

Germany

In Germany the term Mord (murder) is officially used for the intentional killing of another person, but only if the case is especially severe. The requirements can be read in § 211 of the German criminal law, Strafgesetzbuch (StGB).

I. The murderer shall be punished with imprisonment for life. II. A murderer is, whoever kills a human being out of murderous lust, to satisfy his sexual desires, from greed or otherwise base motives,(1) treacherously or cruelly or with means dangerous to the public or in order to commit or to cover up another crime.

—German criminal law, Strafgesetzbuch (StGB), § 211.

Those qualifying circumstances are categorized into three groups: 1. detestable motive 2. detestable way of committing the crime 3. detestable purpose/aim of the criminal.

Intentional killing that isn\'t murder usually fulfills § 212 (Totschlag = killing: similar to second-degree murder, however actually any case of killing that is not fulfilling the qualifications of murder as seen above - actually the same as Tötung (killing) in Swiss law).

The current form of § 211 StGB was created in the year 1941. Before that the differentiation between Mord (murder) and Totschlag (killing) was, that Mord was killing "with premeditation" ("mit Überlegung" - directly translated: with consideration, however that is just another legal word for the same concept) and Totschlag without (1871-1941). However this differentiation was considered too vague. The reform was orientated on discussions for the reform of the Swiss StGB, which also had the same differentiation. It took over the idea and mainly also the wording of the reform commission for the Swiss StGB headed by Stoss in 1896. With this version, the differentiation between Mord and Totschlag contains problems. This led to ongoing discussions in the legal community about the wording, the interpretation and also about a reform of the law.^{[citation needed]}

If the victim of a killing earnestly wanted to be killed (for example, when suffering an incurable disease) the crime would be Tötung auf Verlangen (killing on demand, § 216 StGB) which would result in 6 months to 5 years in prison (usually suspended) – basically, mercy killing. In 2002, there was a cannibal case in which the offender, Armin Meiwes, claimed that the victim wanted to be killed. The court convicted him of "Totschlag", since they didn\'t see the qualifications of a murder. Both prosecution and defense appealed, the prosecution in order to reach a guilty of murder verdict, the defense in order to reduce the charge to killing on demand. The German "Bundesgerichtshof", the highest German court of appeal, eventually convicted him of murder. For more details, see Armin Meiwes.

If the killing was due to negligence it is punished according to § 222 StGB as fahrlässige Tötung (negligent homicide or manslaughter). Many cases in this field are car accidents due to negligence that result in the death of a person.

If the death is a negligent consequence of an intended act of violence, it is classified as Körperverletzung mit Todesfolge (injury resulting in death).

Penalties

The penalty for Mord is lifelong imprisonment, which is usually suspended after 17-18 years (15 years minimum) on a probation of 5 years or if the court decided on a special gravity (Feststellung der besonderen Schwere der Schuld), the sentence can only be suspended much later, earliest after 18 years but usually after 22-23 years (the law states that a suspension after 15 years is not possible for "special gravity" crimes, but provides no explicit minimum served time). The penalty for Totschlag is five to fifteen years in prison and in especially grave cases life time imprisonment (minimum sentence 15 years). Especially grave cases are very rare, because usually such case already fall under Mord (§ 211). In lesser cases ("minderschwerer Fall", § 213) the prison sentence is one to ten years. The law itself gives one example for a minor case: the killing due to the provocation of the killed person, e.g. if the killed person has beaten him or one of his relatives or has severely insulted them and the killer acted under the influence of great anger. The lesser case of Totschlag is similar.

Felony murder

German criminal law also knows the institute of the felony murder which also carries a life-long sentence, however only if a person is intentionally or negligently killed in the course of a robbery, a kidnapping or a sexual assault. Actually only if the killing was intended by the criminal it is called murder. Intention also includes cases very the criminal knows, that the victim could die, if he simply takes that into account for other purposes.

Robbery with deadly outcome

If the killing was due to gross negligence the criminal can be punished for robbery with deadly outcome (Raub mit Todesfolge) according to § 251. The punishent is a lifetime prison sentence or a prison sentence not below 10 years. The same applies for rape with deadly outcome (§ 178: Vergewaltigung mit Todesfolge) and other crimes.

Attempted suicide

Noteworthy is also that (attempted) suicide and therefore aiding and abetting a person intent on killing himself is not punishable by German criminal law.

Before 1949 the usual punishment for Mord (§ 211) in Germany was capital punishment, except in less severe cases.But due to the Nazi mass murders and death sentences, it was abolished in West Germany in 1949 when Germany\'s constitution, the Grundgesetz, came into use. In East Germany the death penalty was abolished in 1987. After the 1950s it was very rarely used.

Hong Kong

There\'s one ordinance that governs all the crimes against persons, termed as Offences Against the Person Ordinance (HK Laws. Chap 212)

Murder

• "Any person who is convicted of murder shall be imprisoned for life." (Section 2 Murder)
• The judge have discretion power to determine to sentence when the defendant is under 18 during the commission of the crime.
• Those who conspired or solicit murder are also subject to life imprisonment under section 5
• No punishment shall be incurred by any person who kills another by misfortune, or in his own defence, or lawfully in any other manner. (Excusable homicide, section 8)

Attempted Murder

• Attempted murder using poison, wounding another (section 10), by destroying or damaging building (section 11), setting fire to or casting away ship (section 12) and attempting to shoot or drown (section 13), all have penalty of life imprisonment
• Attempted murder by other means not specified above (section 14) shall be liable to imprisonment for life

Manslaughter

"Any person who is convicted of manslaughter shall be liable to imprisonment for life and to pay such fine as the court may award." (Section 7 Manslaughter)

Act against infant

• Anyone attempt to procure the miscarriage of any woman, whether she was or was not with child, has unlawfully administered or caused to be taken by her any poison or other noxious thing, or has unlawfully used any instrument or other means whatsoever with the like intent is liable for life imprisonment (section 46)

• Child is not born

“

Anyone with intent to destroy the life of a child capable of being born alive, by any wilful act causes a child to die before it has an existence independent of its mother shall be guilty of child destruction, and shall be liable to be punished as if he were guilty of manslaughter.

”

(Section 47B Child destruction)

• Child is born

If a woman does or does not do something for her baby\'s death,

“

the act or omission the balance of her mind was disturbed by reason of her not having fully recovered from the effect of giving birth to the child or by reason of the effect of lactation consequent upon the birth of the child

”

, then instead of being charged with murder, infanticide, with the penalty of manslaughter, would apply. (Section 47C Infanticide)

Suicide

• Suicide used to be a crime, as with the UK.
• "A person who aids, abets, counsels or procures the suicide of another, or an attempt by another to commit suicide, shall be guilty of an offence triable upon indictment and shall be liable on conviction to imprisonment for 14 years" (section 33b)

Israel

Israel had 173 murders in 2004, compared to 147 murders in 2000. Israeli government web sitePdf

There are five types of homicide in Israel:

1. Murder - The premeditated killing of a person, or the intentional killing of a person whilst committing, preparing for, or escaping from any crime, is murder. The mandatory punishment for this crime is life imprisonment. Life is usually commuted (clemency from the President) to 30 years from which a third can be deducted by the parole board for good behaviour. Arab Militants are not usually granted pardons or parole other than as part of deals with Arab militant organizations or foreign governments and in exchange for captured Israelis (or their bodies).
2. Reduced sentence murder - If the murderer did not fully understand his actions because of mental defect (but not legal insanity or imbecility), or in circumstances close to self-defence, necessity or duress or where the murderer suffered from serious mental distress because of long-term abuse, the court can give a sentence of less than life.
3. Manslaughter - The deliberate killing of a person without premeditation (or the other circumstances of murder) is manslaughter for which the maximum sentence is 20 years.
4. Negligent killing or vehicular killing - Maximum sentence is 3 years (minimum of 11 months for the driver).
5. Infanticide - A mother kills her baby of less than 12 months and could show she was suffering from the effects of the birth or breast-feeding. Maximum sentence is 5 years.

Italy

By Italian law, murder (omicidio) is regulated by articles 575-582, 584-585, and 589 of the Penal Code (Codice Penale). In general, according to Art.575, "whoever causes the death of a human being is punishable by no less than 21 years in prison"; nevertheless, the law indicates a series of circumstances under which murder has to be punished with life in prison.

It must also be noted that, according to Italian law, any sentence of more than 5 years perpetually deprives (Interdizione perpetua dai Pubblici Uffici) the condemned person of: the voting rights; the ability to exercise any public office; the ability to be employed in any governmental or para-statal position (articles 19, 28, 29). The convict for life is also deprived of his/her quality of parent: the children are either given in custody to the other parent or hosted in a public structure (art.32).

In detail, according to articles 576 and 577 is punishable with life imprisonment murder committed:

1. In order to commit another crime, or in order to escape, of favor, or take advantage from another crime (art.61, sect.2);
2. Against a next of kin (parent or child) and either through insidious means, with premeditation, cruelly, of for futile motives;
3. By a fugitive in order to escape capture, or in order to acquire means of subsistence;
4. While raping or sexually assaulting a person (articles 519, 520, 521).
5. In a cruel way and/or through the use of torture (art.61, sect.1);
6. For abject and/or futile motives (art.61, sect.4);
7. Against a next of kin (parent or child);
8. Through insidious means;
9. With premeditation.

Cases 1 through 4 (art.576) used to be considered capital murder, and therefore punishable by death by firing squad. Since 1946, though, death penalty was discontinued in Italy, and death was substituted with life imprisonment . Sentences for murder under cases 5 through 9 (art.577). instead, are subject to parole or probation.A person that is serving a life sentence can reach libertà condizionata

Besides the criminal murder detailed above, in Italian law the following cases also exist:

1. Infanticide - (Infanticidio in condizioni di abbandono materiale e morale), murder of the infant immediately following the birth committed by the mother who is in conditions of material or moral disorder, is punishable with a sentence between 4 and 12 years (art. 578).
2. Killing on demand - (Omicidio del consenziente), the action to kill someone with his/her consent, is punishable with a sentence between 6 and 15 years. This, however, is considered murder if the victim, when giving his/her consent, was under the age of 18, intoxicated, mentally disable, or if the consent was obtained through violence, menace, or deception (art.579).
3. Assistance or instigation of suicide - (Istigazione o aiuto al suicidio), the action to help someone to commit suicide, or to convince someone to commit suicide, is punishable with a sentence between 5 and 12 years if the suicide succeeds, or between 1 and 5 years if it does not succeed but a body injury has been made. This , however, is considered murder if the suicide is under the age of 14 (art.580).
4. Injury resulting in death - (Omicidio preterintenzionale) occurs when, as a result of a deliberated act of violence not meant to kill (articles 581,582), the death of a person occurs. This crime is punishable with a sentence between 10 and 18 years (art.584). This sentence can be increased from one third to one half (up to 27 years) if a circumstance stated by articles 576 and 577 occurs, or if a weapon is used (art.585).
5. Manslaughter - (Omicidio colposo), the action of causing the death of a person without intention, is punished with a sentence between 6 months and 5 years. If the victims are more than one as a consequence of the same act, multiple counts can be added up to 12 years in prison (art.589).

The Netherlands

By Dutch law, murder (moord) is punishable by a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, which is the longest prison sentence the law allows. A common misconception is that the maximum sentence is 30 years (20 until 2006): this is the longest sentence that can be imposed other than life imprisonment. However, a life sentence is only imposed under special circumstances, such as multiple murders or prior convictions. The average sentence is 12 to 15 years^{[citation needed]}. In addition to a prison sentence, the judge may sentence the suspect to TBS, or \'terbeschikkingstelling\', meaning detention in a psychiatric institution, sometimes including forced treatment. TBS is imposed for a number of years (most often in relation to the severity of the crime) and thereafter prolonged if deemed necessary by a committee of psychiatrists. This can be done indefinitely, and has therefore been criticized as being a life sentence in disguise. Voluntary manslaughter (doodslag) is punishable by a prison sentence of up to 15 years, or life imprisonment when committed during the commission of a crime or as an act of terrorism. Involuntary manslaughter (dood door schuld) is punishable by a prison sentence of up to two years. If involuntary manslaughter is caused by recklessness, the maximum sentence that can be imposed is four years.

Norway

In Norway any act of murder (mord or drap) is generally split into three categories; planned murder, intentional murder or murder as a result of neglect.

Categories of murder

1. Planned murder or First Degree Murder - (overlagt drap) is a murder committed with the intention of taking the life of another, by a person fully sane and aware of what he/she is doing, and having planned the act of murder ahead. Planned murder is punished with up to 21 years of imprisonment. Under special circumstances, like a murder of severe cruelty, or if there is reason to believe the offender may commit murder again, additional years of imprisonment can be given.[1] This usually takes place at a court hearing near the end of the sentence.
2. Intentional murder or Second Degree Murder -(forsettlig drap) is a murder committed with the intention of taking the life of another, by a person fully sane and aware of what he/she is doing, without the act of murder having been planned ahead. Murder of passion usually falls into this category. Intentional murder is punished by 6 to 12 years of imprisonment. [2]
3. Murder as a result of neglect or Manslaughter - (uaktsomt drap) is defined as a case were someone has been killed as a result of the offenders neglect. For example, a car driver may be convicted for murder if someone is killed as a result of his/her careless driving. Murder as a result of neglect is punishable by 3-6 years, depending on the circumstances. [3]

Other forms of murder

Assisted suicide is generally illegal in Norway, and will in most cases be treated as planned murder, although the punishment may be milder depending on the circumstances.

Euthanasia (aktiv dødshjelp) has been much debated in Norway. Some groups have expressed that it should be legal in cases where the victim is sane and fully aware of what he/she is asking for. Acts of euthanasia, however, are illegal, and are treated as any other form of assisted suicide.

Romania

In Romania as of 2005, there were reported 453 homicide cases, Romanian government web site and 231 as of June 2006. Romanian government web site According to the Romanian Penal Code, a person can face a penalty ranging from 10 to 25 years or life imprisonment for murder. (There are also mandatory restrictions of some constitutional rights for all types of murder.)^{[citation needed]}

Degrees of murder

• Murder - (10 to 20 years) Killing a person when no aggravating circumstances apply.
• Qualified murder (15 to 25 years). Aggravating circumstances:

a) with premeditation

b) concerning a material interest

c) against spouse or close relative

d) taking advantage of victim\'s impossibility of self-defence

e) when putting in danger the lives of multiple persons

f) concerning job attributions of the victim

g) for facilitating or hiding another crime

h) in public

• Extremely grave murder (15 to 25 years or life imprisonment). Aggravating circumstances:

a) committed in a cruel way

b) against two or more persons

c) by a person who had already committed a murder

d) in order to hide a robbery

e) against a pregnant woman

f) against a policeman, gendarme, magistrate or soldier (in connection with their public duties)

• Negligent or accidental murder (1 to 5 years in simple form). Aggravating circumstances:

a) Caused by a professional in connection with his job for not respecting the legal dispositions (2 to 7 years)

b) By a vehicle driver with blood alcohol concentration (BAC) above legal limits or in a drunk state (5 to 15 years)

c) By a professional in a drunk state - in connection with his job duties (5 to 15 years)

d) When causing the death of two or more persons (5 to 15 years)

• Infanticide (2 to 7 years).^{[citation needed]}

Switzerland

In Switzerland murder (Mord, Assassinat or Assassinio respectively in German, French or Italian) is also used for the premeditated killing of another person, but only if the motives are cruel, disgusting or show an overall disrespect of human life. Penalty ranges from ten years to life in prison. Furthermore, homicide is considered murder if it is cruel (e.g. inflicts great pain on the victim) and/or unusual, done so using explosives or arson, or if it is done to satisfy perverse lusts. Any homicide not meeting these standards is considered to be a killing (Tötung, Meurtre or Omicidio), and the penalty is not as heavy. Most homicides in Switzerland are considered killings, with the penalty ranging from 5 to 20 years.

The Swiss equivalent for manslaughter is Totschlag, Meurtre passionel or Omicidio passionale. Killers are sentenced for Totschlag when they committed the crime in a very, and especially excusable, state of excitement (a "Crime of passion"). For example, a wife who\'s been mistreated by her husband for years, and kills him in a fit of rage, would be sentenced for Totschlag. The penalty is one to ten years in prison.

There are many other privileged variants of killing, similar to manslaughter, such as killing on demand of the "victim"; or assisted suicide, in which case the punishment is considerably lower; this latter is only punishable if there are selfish motives. The "assisted suicide" in general is not punishable.

The relevant articles of the Swiss Penal Code (Strafgesetzbuch) are 111 to 117 (and in a certain measure, 118 to 120), which can be read in the Swiss Penal Code, second book, in French French language version of Swiss Penal Code, Italian Italian language version of Swiss Penal Code, or German German language version of Swiss Penal Code.

United Kingdom

Further information: murder in English law

Statistics show that there were 859 homicides in England and Wales in one year (April 2004- March 2005, [4]). This is low compared to the United States with 16,137 murders in 2004 [5], however these are numbers which do not take different population sizes into account: a better perspective can be gained by comparing murders per year to population (1.6 murders for every hundred thousand people in England and Wales, 5.5 in the USA, and 62 in Colombia - source). Because the newspaper coverage tends to focus on the more lurid or controversial cases (e.g. Tony Martin), there is considerable public misunderstanding as to the actual law. The Law Commission Final Report on Partial Defences to Murder (2004) [6] commissioned research to determine the extent of this misunderstanding and reported at 2.35:

The notion that all murders, as the law is presently framed, represent instances of a uniquely heinous offence for which a single uniquely severe penalty is justified does not reflect the views of a cross section of the public when asked to reflect on particular cases.

Although the sample was small, the research showed that the public accepts a range of culpability within the definition of murder and so rejects the idea of a single mandatory life sentence. The Report also lists all the main European and common law definitions for homicide at 2.53/2.54.

In English law, the definition of murder is:

The unlawful killing of a human being, under the Queen\'s Peace, with "malice aforethought").

Contrast this with the original definition by Sir Edward Coke CJ in 1597 of:

Murder is when a man of sound memory, and of the age of discretion, unlawfully killeth within any country of the realm any reasonable creature in rerum natura under the King\'s peace, with malice aforethought, either expressed by the party or implied by law, so as the party wounded, or hurt, etc. die of the wound or hurt, etc. within a year and a day after the same.

Note that it is no longer necessary for the victim to die within a year and a day of the offence,Law Reform (Year and a Day Rule) Act 1996, s1 nor for the victim to be a reasonable creature.

Specific statutory instances of situations where death is caused are:

• Infanticide - Under s1 Infanticide Act 1938, the intentional killing of an infant under 1-year-old by a mother suffering from post-natal depression or other post-natal disturbance represents an early form of diminished responsibility defence and
• Causing death by dangerous driving (of a motor vehicle) was introduced because jurors, many of whom were drivers, thought the charge of manslaughter to carry too great a level of stigma for the degree of fault actually shown by some drivers and refused to convict when the charge was manslaughter. Now motor manslaughter is considered an acceptable charge for the more seriously dangerous examples of driving resulting in death, with aggravated TWOC for the least seriously dangerous driving resulting in death.

The aggravated form of criminal damage, including arson, under s1(2) Criminal Damage Act 1971 could be the anticipatory offence rather than a charge of attempted murder.

Any other killing would be considered either manslaughter in English law or an accident.

• Voluntary manslaughter is murder mitigated to manslaughter by virtue of the statutory defences under the Homicide Act 1957, namely provocation, diminished responsibility or suicide pact.
• Involuntary manslaughter is the killing of another person whether by act or omission either while committing an unlawful act (known as constructive manslaughter) or by gross negligence.

English Law also allows for transferred malice. For example, where a man fires a gun with the intent to kill person A but the shot misses and kills an otherwise unconnected person B, the intent to kill transfers from person A to person B and a charge of murder would stand. The accused could also be charged with the attempted murder of A.

As to mens rea, the model direction to be given to juries for Intention in English law following R v. Woollin [7], is a modified version of that proposed by Lord Lane, C.J. in R v Nedrick [1986] 1 WLR 1025, namely:

Where the charge is murder and in the rare cases where the simple direction is not enough, the jury should be directed that they are not entitled to infer the necessary intention, unless they feel sure that death or serious bodily harm was a virtual certainty (barring some unforeseen intervention) as a result of the defendant\'s actions and that the defendant appreciated that such was the case, the decision being for the jury to decide on a consideration of all the evidence.

The defences of duress and necessity in English law are excluded from murder cases. An exception is Re A [2000], a case involving a pair of conjoined twins. However, the judge noted the legal adage that \'hard cases make bad law\' and recommended that the precedent should not be followed.

Comparatively recent adaptations to the English law of murder include the abolition of the "year and a day rule", and the proposed introduction of a less restrictive regime for corporate manslaughter. The Law Commission Consultation Paper No. 177 also advocates a redefin