MANSLAUGHTER

Manslaughter: Criminal homicide thats not murder; Criminal homicide committed without malice (remember that murder is criminal homicide committed with malice). At Common Law, M/S serves as a catch-all category for all criminal homicide that was not murder.

INVOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER 2 M/S

Common Law: M/S in which the death of the victim was not the intended or contemplated result. MPC 210.4. Negligent Homicide: Criminal homicide constitutes negligent homicide when it is committed negligently

CRIMINALLY NEGLIGENT HOMICIDE:

MPC: Where a (1) reasonable person would foresee a (2) high degree of risk of death or great bodily harm, or (1) in which the actually knew his conduct created such a (2) risk. Criminal negligence is mitigated homicide because both the level of risk and the actors state of mind are less culpable than required for depraved heart murder or for reckless manslaughter. State v. Bier (Montana, 1979) After drinking at the stock car races, the victim holds a gun up to her head as a threat for her husband to not leave her. He slaps the gun away and it fires and shot the victim. Appeal from conviction for Crim N Homicide. contends that just b c he made available a loaded gun to his into!icated wife doesn"t mean he displayed a #conscious disregard$ for her life % & N Homicide. He didn"t '()) H*+, -upCt affirmed conviction. .he risk displayed involves a gross deviation from the std of conduct to considerably greater than lack of ordinary care. A person is guilty of N Homicide when his conduct constitutes a gross deviation from a reasonable std of care. created the risk. **Steffey Problem. Handling your own property usually doesn"t liability for homicide. He didn"t do a whole lot to homicide/ no reasonable to predict suicide. His act was moving the gun from the closet to the bed0 People v. Rodruiguez (CA, 1960) left her children at home for a short period when a fire broke out and killed them. Court held that there was no Crim N 1no evidence that a probable criminal act death Her decision to leave was not criminal and did not contribute to their death riminality re!uires "a# criminal act is pro$imate cause of death or %&H "'# Negligence and intent must concur "men rea and actus rea# People v. Watkins (Colorado, 1978) shot the victim after the victim pulled a knife on "s brother over a bar fight (ssue was whether the jury instructions should have included a lesser charge Court held #when there is any evidence, however improbable, unreasonable, or slight, that tends to reduce homicide to a lesser grade, the is entitled to an instruction of that lesser grade.$ (ule) a person who kills in the good*faith but unreasonable belief that his actions were +ustified cannot be punished for anything less than rim N Homicide Criminally negligent homicide is a lesser crime than reckless manslaughter, & carries a lesser penalty.

Criminally Negligent Homicide

1. Conscious disregard

v.s.

Reckless Manslaughter
-OR1

Should have foreseen the risk

1. Actual Awareness

'. +isk is the same 2 substantial and unjustifiable 3 gross deviation from std of care