Murder

---

The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) categorizes homicides into four categories: argument related, gang related, felony crime related, and other. Felony related homicides are murders that take place in conjunction with felony crimes, such as sex crimes or narcotics related crimes. BJS statistics show that over 50% of homicides in the United States take place in large cities with populations of over 100,000.

Within the criminal justice system there are different forms of murder, each of which has its own harsh punishments. The following are short descriptions for a variety of murder related crimes in California:

Manslaughter-the illegal killing of another person without malice.

• Involuntary manslaughter-the unpremeditated and unintentional killing of a person. This type of death is typically the result of negligent behavior, such as a drunk driving accident that kills the defendant’s passenger or occupants in other vehicles involved in the accident.
• Vehicular manslaughter-a crime in which one or more victims die as the result of the reckless operation of a motor vehicle.
• Voluntary manslaughter-the killing of another person, in which the defendant had not planned to commit the crime. This type of crime may be the result of a heated argument where a fight ensues and one person kills another.

Murder-the deliberate killing of another human being with malice.

• First degree murder-premeditated murder in which the defendant planned to kill his or her victim. This is an extremely serious crime and carries with it very harsh penalties.
• Second degree murder-the intentional killing of another person, without premeditation.

Justifiable homicide-the death of a criminal that occurs as the result of self defense or the defense of another human being. This is the only form of homicide which, in many cases, does not have criminal repercussions.

If you have been charged with murder in California, you may be facing life in prison or the death penalty. It is of the utmost importance that you hire a skilled and experiencedCentury City mob crime defense attorney from the Law Offices of Lawrence Wolf to protect your rights and your future.