New York Homicide and Murder Laws
Clearly, the crime in existence in New York and everywhere else that carries the most severe consequences in general is homicide. Homicide can be a term used for several different types of wrongful killing, but the bottom line is that anyone accused of a homicide-related offense or murder faces the ultimate legal challenge from the state.
Below is a brief overview of homicide and murder in New York, and if you are under investigation for either of these crimes, you need to act immediately to protect your rights. Contact us to schedule an initial consultation and to make sure that you assert your strongest defense.
Homicide Defined
The New York penal laws define homicide as:
§ 125.00 Homicide defined.
Homicide means conduct which causes the death of a person or an unborn child with which a female has been pregnant for more than twenty-four weeks under circumstances constituting murder, manslaughter in the first degree, manslaughter in the second degree, criminally negligent homicide, abortion in the first degree or self-abortion in the first degree.
The statutes tend to develop from this foundational definition, and as is the case with every other jurisdiction, there are different forms of homicide. The basic difference between them is the presence of intent in the defendant, and some examples of homicide and murder statutes appear below:
§ 125.27 Murder in the first degree.
A person is guilty of murder in the first degree when:
- With intent to cause the death of another person, he causes the death of such person or of a third person;
As you see here, intent is required for first-degree murder. For second-degree murder to apply, there needs to be some absence of specific intent and/or some extenuating circumstance, including extreme emotional distress.
Manslaughter Defined
Manslaughter is also a serious crime, and is defined as follows by the statutes:
§ 125.20 Manslaughter in the first degree.
A person is guilty of manslaughter in the first degree when:
- With intent to cause serious physical injury to another person, he causes the death of such person or of a third person;
There are other situations which constitute first-degree manslaughter, and again, second-degree manslaughter would constitute the absence of some intent to injure or the presence of some extreme circumstance.
The biggest difference between all of these crimes is, of course, the potential remedy. First-degree murder can result in the death penalty, and other forms of murder can result in terms of 25 years to life. Manslaughter is less severe, but can include a sentence of 15 years in prison.
Overall, homicide and murder in New York are charges that need to be fought aggressively. Contact the Blanch Law Firm as soon as possible to get the process of building your defense started.
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