Criminal Law

The killing of one human being by another human being.

The killing of one human being by another human being with malice aforethought.

Murder by poison; lying in wait; torture; murder done willfully, deliberately and with premeditation; or murder that results from a death that occurred during the commission of a dangerous felony--in other words, through application of the Felony Murder Rule.

All other murders, in other words, those homicides committed with malice aforethought ut which do nto meet the requirements for murder in the first degree.

An unlawful homicide committed without malice aforethought.

The intentional killing of a human being by another human being without actual malice or with malice but under mitigating circumstances.

The unintentional killing of a human being by another human being without malice but under circumstances involving gross negligence.

Exists when the defendant has a "man endangering state of mind" as evidenced by one of the following intentions: 1. Intent to kill as expressed by the defendant. 2. Intent to cause someone serious bodily harm as implied by the actions of the defendant. 3. A wanton and willful disregard of human life as implied by the actions of the defendant.

Done with intent.

Deliberation means to carefully consider

To think out or plan beforehand.

That cause which starts, ignites or
makes possible the act which follows and is determined by the "but for" or "substantial factor" test.

An act which in a natural and continuous sequence of events, unbroken by unforseeable, independent, intervening acts, causes injury to the plaintiff, without which the injury would not have occurred.

Holds that if a person causes events to
come about which obtain his or her desired result, then that person's actions are still the proximate cause of the result even if an intervening act was independent and unforeseeable. This doctrine therefore states an exception to the otherwise applied rule of proximate cause, as defined above.

Holds that when more than one cause brings about the result, then both are equally responsible.