First Degree Murder - Law Dictionary Search Results
Home Dictionary Name: first degree murderfirst-degree murder
first-degree murder see murder ...
murder
murder [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 NOTE: 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. [di-pr?vd-h rt-] 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 NOTE: Depraved-heart murder is usually considered second- or...
second-degree murder
second-degree murder see murder ...
third-degree murder
third-degree murder see murder ...
first degree
first degree : the grade given to the most serious forms of crimes [burglary in the first degree] first-degree adj ...
principal in the first degree
principal in the first degree see principal ...
diminished capacity
diminished capacity 1 : an abnormal mental condition that renders a person unable to form the specific intent necessary for the commission of a crime (as first-degree murder) but that does not amount to insanity called also diminished responsibility partial insanity compare insanity, irresistible impulse test, m'naghten test, substantial capacity test 2 a : a defense based on a claim of diminished capacity b : the doctrine that diminished capacity may negate an element of a crime NOTE: If diminished capacity is shown, negating an element of the crime with which a defendant is charged, the defendant can only be convicted of a lesser offense that does not include the element. ...
implied acquittal
implied acquittal : an acquittal of a more serious offense (as first-degree murder) that is considered to result from a verdict which convicts the defendant of a lesser included offense while remaining silent on the greater one NOTE: A greater offense and a lesser included offense are the same offense under a double jeopardy analysis. Therefore, a conviction of a lesser included offense and implied acquittal of the greater offense bars retrial on the greater offense. ...
degree
degree 1 : a step in a direct line of descent or in the line of ascent to a common ancestor 2 a : a measure of the seriousness of a crime see also fifth degree, first degree, fourth degree, second degree, third degree NOTE: Crimes are rated by degrees for the purpose of imposing more severe punishments for more serious crimes. b : a measure of care ;also : a measure of negligence esp. in connection with bailments see also care, negligence ...
Degree
Degree [fr. degre, Fr.; degrat, O. Fr.; gradus, Lat.], a step; the difference in relative importance of the same species, also to denote priorities in family relationships; the state of a person, as to be a barrister-at-law, or to be a Bachelor or Master of Arts of a University; in criminal law, an accused person is a principal in the first degree (i.e., the actual perpetrator of the crime) or in the second dgree (i.e., one who merely aids and abets).means a degree obtained by examination after a minimum of three years' study, although a research degree obtained by thesis, or a degree obtained by examination in less than three years may be considered on its merits, including, if necessary, the qualifications on which registration for the degree was based, Consolidated Regulations of the Four Inns of Court (1988) Sch. 2, Category II(a) (UK) Halsbury's Laws of England 3(1), para 374, p. 290....
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