Criminal Law

There are four types of common law murder:

• Intent to kill murder
  • Willful and premeditated
  • Only type to require intentional malice
• Grievous bodily harm murder
  • If you only intended to cause grievous bodily harm but actually killed him, then that's still murder.
• Depraved heart murder
  • Like extreme recklessness
  • The act must be done in spite of a substantial and unjustifiable risk to human life.
    • Else it is just gross negligence and therefore involuntary manslaughter
  • The act must be done with a callous disregard for human life such that alice aforethought is implied.
    • Else it is just involuntary manslaughter
• Felony Murder

  The felony murder rule states one who commits one of the jurisdiction's specified felonies which results in someone's death is guilty of murder.

  Typically, this list includes arson, burglary, rape, and robbery.

  The felony murder rule does have three notable limiting requirements:

  1. Independent Felony

     To trigger the felony murder rule, a felony must be independent from the death caused.

     This is often assessed by asking if the felony would merge into a murder charge because it is a lesser-included charge. If so, it is not independent.

     As an example, an assault that results in a death is not independent. A defendant cannot be convicted of both assault and murder for the same act. In contrast, rape never merges into murder, so the independent felony rule would never apply in such cases.

  2. Inherently Dangerous Felony

     For a felony to trigger the felony murder rule, it must be "inherently dangerous" to human life.

  3. In Furtherance of a Felony

     The killing cannot be too remote from the felony. It must be performed "in furtherance of" the felony.

     Evasion of law enforcement after a crime is usually considered part of the crime's commission.