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mur·der 1 /'mər-dər/ n [partly from Old English morthor; partly from Old French murdre, of Germanic origin]: the crime of unlawfully and unjustifiably killing another under circumstances defined by statute (as with premeditation); esp: such a crime committed purposely, knowingly, and recklessly with extreme indifference to human life or during the course of a serious felony (as robbery or rape) compare cold blood, cooling time, homicide, manslaughter◇ Self-defense, necessity, and lack of capacity for criminal responsibility (as because of insanity) are defenses to a charge of murder. Most state statutes and the U.S. Code divide murder into two degrees. Florida, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania currently have three degrees of murder. Some states do not assign degrees of murder.de·praved–heart murder /di-'prāvd-'härt-/: a murder that is the result of an act which is dangerous to others and shows that the perpetrator has a depraved mind and no regard for human life◇ Depraved-heart murder is usu. considered second- or third-degree murder.felony murder: a murder that occurs in the commission of a serious felony (as burglary or sexual battery) compare misdemeanor-manslaughter at manslaughter◇ Felony murder is usu. considered first-degree murder. Felony murder does not require specific intent to kill, and an accessory to the felony may also be charged with the murder.first–degree murder: a murder that is committed with premeditation or during the course of a serious felony (as kidnapping) or that otherwise (as because of extreme cruelty) requires the most serious punishment under the lawsecond–degree murder: a murder that is committed without premeditation but with some intent (as general or transferred intent) or other circumstances not covered by the first-degree murder statutethird–degree murder: a murder that is not first- or second-degree murder: asa: a murder committed in the perpetration of a felony not listed in the first-degree murder statuteb: depraved-heart murder in this entrymurder 2 vt: to kill (a human being) unlawfully and under circumstances constituting murdervi: to commit murder
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam-Webster. 1996.
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noun
act of killing, act of slaying, act of taking life, assassination, caedes, destruction, destruction of human life, destruction of life, destructiveness, elimination, genocide, homicide, intentional killing, killing, liquidation, massacre, occisio, taking of human life, unlawful killing, violent death
associated concepts: assault with intent to murder, attempted murder, felonious homicide, felony murder, first-degree murder, premeditated murder, second-degree murder, voluntary manslaughter, willful murder
II
index
assassination, destroy (efface), dispatch (act of putting to death), dispatch (put to death), extinguish, homicide, killing, manslaughter, slay
Burton's Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006
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n.The unlawful killing of a person by another person with malice aforethought.adj.murderous
The Essential Law Dictionary. — Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. Amy Hackney Blackwell. 2008.
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The killing of a human being by a sane person, with intent or malice aforethought, and with no legal excuse or authority. Many states make killings in which there is torture, movement of the person (kidnapping) before the killing, or death of a police officer or prison guard first degree murders with or without premeditation, with malice presumed. A killing that happens during the course of specified crimes (known as felony murder) may also be first degree murder. (See also: first degree murder, second degree murder, felony murder doctrine)Category: Criminal Law
Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary. Gerald N. Hill, Kathleen Thompson Hill. 2009.
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n. The intentional and malicious killing of a human being.@ first degree murderMurder that is premeditated, or done during the commission of certain other felonies.@ murder-suicideAct of killing another followed by suicide, sometimes carried out in a pact, other times without the assent of the murdered person.@ second degree murderAn unpremeditated murder not committed while carrying out another felony.@
Webster's New World Law Dictionary. Susan Ellis Wild. 2000.
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The unlawful killing of another human being without justification or excuse.
Dictionary from West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005.
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The unlawful killing of another human being without justification or excuse.II The unlawful killing of a human being with deliberate intent to kill: (1) murder in the first degree is characterized by premeditation; (2) murder in the second degree is characterized by a sudden and instantaneous intent to kill or to cause injury without caring whether the injury kills or not.
Short Dictionary of (mostly American) Legal Terms and Abbreviations.
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n.the killing of a human being by a sane person, with intent, malice aforethought (prior intention to kill the particular victim or anyone who gets in the way) and with no legal excuse or authority. In those clear circumstances, this is first degree murder. By statute, many states consider a killing in which there is torture, movement of the person before the killing (kidnapping) or the death of a police officer or prison guard, or it was as an incident to another crime (as during a hold-up or rape), to be first degree murder, with or without premeditation and with malice presumed. Second degree murder is such a killing without premeditation, as in the heat of passion or in a sudden quarrel or fight. Malice in second degree murder may be implied from a death due to the reckless lack of concern for the life of others (such as firing a gun into a crowd or bashing someone with any deadly weapon). Depending on the circumstances and state laws, murder in the first or second degree may be chargeable to a person who did not actually kill, but was involved in a crime with a partner who actually did the killing or someone died as the result of the crime. Example: In a liquor store stick-up in which the clerk shoots back at the hold-up man and kills a bystander, the armed robber can be convicted of at least second degree murder. A charge of murder requires that the victim must die within a year of the attack. Death of an unborn child who is "quick" (fetus is moving) can be murder, provided there was premeditation, malice and no legal authority. Thus, abortion is not murder under the law. Example: Jack Violent shoots his pregnant girlfriend, killing the fetus. Manslaughter, both voluntary and involuntary, lacks the element of malice aforethought.See also: first degree murder, homicide, malice aforethought, manslaughter, premeditation, second degree murder
Law dictionary. EdwART. 2013.
