Murder

The interpretation of the term "murder" causes a lot of moral and legal debate. From the point of view of modern law , causing death to another person is considered criminal . In most countries, suicide is not considered a criminal offense. The practical significance of this position is revealed when there is an unsuccessful attempt at suicide, which cannot qualify as an attempt on life. The exception is cases in which an action aimed at depriving a person of his life contains other compositions , for example, suicide, committed in a way that threatens the lives of other people, if there is guilt , or “suicide” of a suicide bomber . From a legal point of view (according to Article 105 of the Criminal Code of Russia ), murder is only intentional causing death to another person. The definition of "manslaughter" existed in Soviet criminal law , but in modern Russian criminal law it was replaced by the term " causing death by negligence ." In some cases, the law allows for the intentional deprivation of life of people: an adversary- combatant during hostilities; sentenced to death ; the criminal with the necessary defense of himself and other persons; a prisoner while trying to escape from custody; the violator, when trying to enter a guarded facility, etc. In the countries of the Anglo-Saxon legal family, the separation between murder ( English murder ) and causing death ( English manslaughter ) is made dependent on the degree of guilt of the person who committed the act. So, a person who accidentally shoots someone as a result of games with weapons can be charged with murder ^[4] , and by killing a person in a fight - death ^[5] .

D. Moor , poster of the pre-revolutionary film "The Killer", 1910s.

Different cultures have different attitudes toward causing death in animals. In Russian, the word “killing” is not formally applied to animals, but the words “ slaughter of animals ”, “ hunting ”, “ hunting ” or “ hunting for animals” are used. Whether or not this is a murder depends on the moral views and the presence or absence of compassion for the dead creatures, as well as on the formal approach to the grammatical interpretation of the very concept of “murder”. The designation of the act of murder in political disputes is often used as a sign of particular condemnation: opponents of abortion , euthanasia , the death penalty , animal advocates and pacifists sometimes expand the concept of murder, going beyond the legal meaning, in order to emphasize the reprehensibility of these types of deprivation of life.

The oldest of the dead people, whose remains were discovered by scientists, an alpine resident of the Upper Neolithic era, struck from a bow 12 thousand years ago, was shot in the back ^[6] . The evolutionary origin of the killing phenomenon is debatable. Thus, the professor of psychology at the University of Texas , a specialist in the field of social and evolutionary psychology, David Bass, in The Murderer Next Door: Why the Mind is Designed to Kill (2005) presented the theory that killing has a genetic basis, because during the evolution of individuals those who killed their rivals gained an advantage ^[7] . On the other hand, the professor of psychology at the University of Liverpool , a specialist in the field of crime research, David Canter , evaluating Bass’s research, calls attempts to evolutionarily explain complex human behavior to the unhealthy interests of the public ^[8] .

Since the entry into force of the Criminal Code of Russia in 1996, murder in Russian criminal law has come to mean only intentional causing death to another person. The corpus delicti of “unintentional murder” that existed in the previous (in the RSFSR) criminal codes corresponds to the current “ causing death by negligence ” (Article 109 of the Criminal Code of Russia). Clarifications of the Supreme Court of Russia on this issue are given in the Resolution (inaccessible link) of the Plenum of the Armed Forces of Russia "On Judicial Practice in Murder Cases" No. 1 of 01/27/1999. According to Article 105 of the Criminal Code of Russia :

1. Murder, that is, intentionally causing death to another person, shall be punishable by deprivation of liberty for a term of 6 to 15 years, with or without restraint of liberty.
2. Murder:
a) two or more persons;
b) a person or his relatives in connection with the performance by this person of official activity or the fulfillment of a public debt;
c) a minor or other person who is obviously for a guilty person in a helpless state, as well as involving an abduction of a person;
d) women, obviously known to the perpetrator in a state of pregnancy ;
e) committed with extreme cruelty;
f) committed in a generally dangerous way;
f¹) based on the motive of blood feud ;
g) committed by a group of persons, a group of persons by prior conspiracy or an organized group;
h) for mercenary motives or for hire, as well as coupled with robbery , extortion or banditry ;
i) from hooligan motives;
j) in order to conceal another crime or to facilitate its commission, as well as involving rape or violent acts of a sexual nature;
k) on the grounds of national, racial, religious hatred or enmity, or on the basis of hatred or enmity against any social group;
l) in order to use the organs or tissues of the victim, -
the applicable sentence is deprivation of liberty for a term of 8 to 20 years, with restriction of liberty for a term of one year to two years, or life imprisonment, or the death penalty .

In addition to the above described main (part one of article 105 of the Criminal Code of Russia) and qualified (part two of article 105 of the Criminal Code of Russia) of the murders, the so-called privileged elements of this crime are also provided for in the Russian Criminal Code :

• Article 106. Killing by a mother of a newborn child . The killing by a mother of a newborn child during or immediately after birth, as well as the killing by a mother of a newborn child in a psychologically traumatic situation or in a state of mental disorder that does not exclude sanity, is punishable by restriction of liberty for a term of two to four years or imprisonment for up to 5 years old.
• Article 107. Murder committed in a state of passion .
  1. Murder committed in a state of sudden strong emotional disturbance (affect) caused by violence, bullying or grave insult on the part of the victim or other unlawful or immoral actions (inaction) of the victim, as well as a prolonged psycho-traumatic situation arising from systematic unlawful or immoral behavior victim, - shall be punished by restraint of liberty for a term of up to three years or imprisonment for the same term.
  2. The murder of two or more persons committed in the state of passion is punishable by deprivation of liberty for a term of up to five years.
• Article 108. Murder committed when the limits of the necessary defense are exceeded or if the measures necessary to detain the person who committed the crime are exceeded .
  1. Murder committed when the limits of the necessary defense are exceeded - shall be punishable by restraint of liberty for a term of up to two years or imprisonment for the same term.
  2. Murder committed if the measures necessary to detain the person who committed the crime are exceeded, shall be punishable by restraint of liberty for a term of up to three years or imprisonment for the same term.

Since these acts constitute a lesser public danger compared to ordinary murder (privileged staff ), they are subject to less severe penalties.

Deliberate infliction of death on a person may be included in the objective side of other compounds as a qualifying attribute:

• Clause "b" of part 3 of article 205 " Terrorist act ". The commission of an explosion, arson, or other actions that frighten the population and create the risk of death, causing significant property damage or other serious consequences, in order to influence decision-making by authorities or international organizations, as well as the threat of these actions for the same purposes. If this entailed the intentional infliction of death on a person, they shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of 15 to 20 years with restriction of freedom for a term of one year to two years or life imprisonment. Note. A person who participated in the preparation of a terrorist act shall be exempted from criminal liability if it helped to prevent the implementation of the terrorist act by a timely warning to the authorities or otherwise, and if the actions of this person do not contain a different corpus delicti.
• Part 4 of article 206, “ Taking of a hostage ”. The capture or retention of a person as a hostage, committed in order to force the state, organization or citizen to take any action or to refrain from taking any action as a condition for the release of the hostage. If these acts entailed the intentional infliction of death on a person, - shall be punishable by deprivation of liberty for a term of 15 to 20 years with restraint of liberty for a term of one year to two years or life imprisonment. Note. A person who voluntarily or at the request of the authorities freed the hostage shall be exempted from criminal liability if his actions do not contain a different corpus delicti.
• Part 3 of article 281 " Diversion ". The commission of an explosion, arson, or other actions aimed at the destruction or damage of enterprises, structures, ways and means of communication, communications, life support facilities for the purpose of undermining the economic security and defense capability of the Russian Federation. If these acts entailed the intentional infliction of death on a person, - shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of 15 to 20 years or life imprisonment.

Separately punished for crimes against humanity:

• Article 357 “ Genocide ”. Actions aimed at the complete or partial destruction of a national, ethnic, racial or religious group as such by killing members of this group, causing serious harm to their health, forcible obstruction of childbearing, forced transfer of children, forced relocation or other creation of living conditions designed for physical destruction members of this group - shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of 12 to 20 years with restriction of freedom for a term of up to two years, or life imprisonment or the death penalty.

Also punished for the murder or attempt on the life of a statesman or public figure; law enforcement officer; person administering justice or preliminary investigation:

• Article 277. An encroachment on the life of a state or public figure committed in order to terminate his state or other political activity or out of revenge for such activity, shall be punishable by deprivation of liberty for a term of 12 to 20 years with a restriction of liberty for a term of up to two years, or life imprisonment, or the death penalty.
• Article 317. An encroachment on the life of a law enforcement officer, military serviceman, as well as their relatives, in order to impede the legitimate activities of such persons in maintaining public order and ensuring public safety or out of revenge for such activity, shall be punishable by deprivation of liberty for a term of 12 to 20 years with a restriction liberty for up to two years, either by life imprisonment, or the death penalty.
• Article 295. Infringement on the life of a judge, jury or other person involved in the administration of justice, prosecutor, investigator, interrogating officer, defense attorney, expert, specialist, bailiff, bailiff, as well as their relatives in connection with the consideration of cases or materials in court, by conducting a preliminary investigation, or by executing a sentence, court decision or other judicial act, committed to obstruct the legitimate activities of these individuals or to seek revenge for such activities b, - shall be punishable by deprivation of liberty for a term of 12 to 20 years, with restriction of liberty for a term of up to two years, or by life imprisonment, or the death penalty.

In total, the penalty for murder is provided for in 11 articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and may amount to a restriction of freedom for a period of 1 to 3 years, imprisonment for a period of 2 months to 20 years, life imprisonment or the death penalty.

• List of countries by level of intentional killings
• Serial killers
• The death penalty
• Suicide
• Murder on Detention
• Criminal Code of the Russian Federation , Art. 105-108.

• Borodin S.V. Crimes against life. - SPb. : Legal Center Press, 2003. - 496 p. - 1050 copies. - ISBN 5-94201-155-9 .

• Kapinus O.S. Murders: motives and goals. - M .: IMPE-PABLISH, 2004 .-- 310 p. - ISBN 5-9594-0010-3 .

• Country kill statistics