Definition Essay: Murder

Murder is considered a serious crime in our country. The loosely defined term of murder implies that a person who kills another human being with intent is known as being the worst kind of violent crime we see in our society. Any unlawful killing requires that a living person be killed and it does not mean that the guilty person feels any hatred or spite in order to plan and execute the act of murder. Moreover, the destructive acts that end peoples lives are classified as homicides which include manslaughter and first and second degree murder. More important, the justice system has put different labels on such crimes, but it also allows room for criminals to get away with murder.

A person who's accused of unlawful killing in a court of law may be faced with a manslaughter charge by the prosecutor. Since there are different scenario's in which a unlawful killing can occur, there are different charges that come with the type of circumstances that surround each case. That is, first and second degree murder charges come into play as the murderer in question will need to be measured up which will tell the public and or jury if his or her intension was premeditated or not. Moreover, the law uses a another general term called manslaughter which has it's own two divisions as well. According to the People's Law Dictionary by Gerald and Kathleen Hill, there are two types of manslaughter. “The first type is voluntary manslaughter (first degree) which is defined as a homicide resulting from an intentional act done with or without malice or premeditation and while in the heat of passion or on sudden provocation”.(Hill) An example would be a husband catching his wife in bed with another man and he kills the man before the heated passion cools off. “The second type is involuntary manslaughter (second degree) which occurs when a death is caused by a violation of a non-felony, and often includes an element of unlawful recklessness or negligence”.(Hill) An example would be reckless driving or vehicular manslaughter. However, manslaughter is distinguished from murder because it implies that their was no intention to kill a person. Therefore, murder is the act of unjustifiably killing another human being with the intention to cause a deadly harm whilst voluntary and involuntary manslaughter imply no forth thought prior to the killing.

While it is clear that people who are convicted of involuntary manslaughter receive a lesser sentence than a person convicted of first degree murder, it does not mean that the accused is not guilty of first degree murder. Plea bargaining is a way out for most criminals who decide to confess their story to the authority in order to receive a lesser sentence. The question is often asked although, “Shouldn't the sentence fit the crime”?

In a court of law, when a killer negotiates a plea bargain, the sentence often does not fit the crime. For example, On March 16, 2005, William Parrott, 38, was charged with stabbing Wanda Alston. She was the director of the Mayor's Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Affairs, in Washington D.C. Wanda Alston was brutally murdered on that day and what made it even more disturbing was that she knew her attacker and the police said in the report that they were neighbors. Also, the report stated, “Parrot said he had ingested crack cocaine on the day of the murder and brought with him a knife from his kitchen when he entered Alston's house”.(Chibbaro)

In addition, the D.C medical examiner's office reported that Alston had been stabbed at least eight times and their was evidence of retaliation as their were numerous stab wounds on her hand and arms. My thoughts around this was that he attacked her and not the other way around. Most people who are confronted with a person who wants to rob them will back down and let them take what it is they want. Especially if it was your neighbor who was threatening you with a knife!

One could easily form the conclusion that Parrot was intending to do some bodily harm as he brutally stabbed Alston but the police said his motive was theft. Parrot told police that he needed more money to buy more drugs and that was why he committed the crime. Therefore, police dropped the first degree murder charge (which carries a sentence of life in prison without parole) and charged him with second degree murder. A second degree conviction would put Parrot in prison between 12 and 28 years. In sum, this leaves