Life is a natural gift. But this process has a beginning and an end, that is, birth and death. It can be natural or not. In the second case, death is often the result of murder, which is always interpreted as a serious crime. The article discusses the concept and types of killings. This information will help in legal proceedings, as well as in many life situations where a person is faced with the need to study the features and nuances of the crime.
Definition
What is killing? How and what is it characterized by? The Criminal Code of the Russian Federation has a clear definition of this term. Murder is the intentional infliction of death on another person.
Death is the cessation of the functioning of all organs and systems of the body. First of all, this condition is characterized by cardiac arrest, which is called clinical death. But the process is completely completed in about 7-10 minutes after the person’s heart stopped. Life is the highest value, therefore deprivation of it is punished with particular severity.
Murder is a criminal offense involving serious punishment. Before knowing its possible limits, it is necessary to study the concept and types of killings. All this plays a huge role in the adjudication.
Foresight
The decisive role is played by the corpus delicti, that is, circumstances that could prompt or create the conditions for the killing to occur. The concept, characteristic, types of it - all these are components of the subsequent analysis of the crime, helping to correctly interpret its results. But how can these critical indicators be identified?
A mandatory component of this crime is the presence or absence of intent. This means that the citizen, acting as a murderer, was fully aware, desired and foresaw the infliction of death on a person. According to the law, a person cannot be judged by a criminal article with the interpretation “murder” if it was committed through negligence. Such moments are considered individually.
Objectivity
The concept of murder and the classification of its types is unthinkable without considering the objective and subjective aspects of the crime. All this will help to fully realize what kind of deed we are talking about.
The object can include human life or the so-called social relations, reflecting the implementation of the citizen's constitutional right to life. The objective side of the murder is the fact of inaction or, conversely, the actions of a citizen, which led to the death of a person. This also includes the connection between the acts committed and the onset of death. If it is absent, then the crime does not take place.
Subjectivity
The concept, signs and types of murder cannot be fully disclosed without awareness of the subjective side of it, because this feature relates directly to the offender and his actions.
The subjective side can only be described as intent. A citizen who commits murder is fully aware of his actions and their social danger, anticipates the outcome and understands the inevitability of the death of the victim. A person can either desire this, or be indifferent to the death of the victim. Indifference is also part of the subjective side of the crime. All of the above circumstances can be qualified as murder. The concept, composition and types of this crime should be described in detail.
Who can be in the dock for a committed act? The subject of a crime is a person who has reached the age of 14 years. Previously, it is impossible to judge a citizen using the sanctions of this article.
It is important to remember that a teenager who has reached the age of 14 and has committed murder must be in an adequate and sane state. In the absence of these conditions, the violator will not succeed in judging by the relevant articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation . After all, if a person is inadequate, he is not able to foresee social danger and the result of his actions.
According to circumstances
What is included in the subjective and objective aspects of the described crime, we discussed. Now we should consider in more detail the concept and types of killings. In criminal law, the classification can be varied. For example, according to the characteristics of the parties. At the moment, the following types of causing death to a citizen are distinguished:
- simple;
- under aggravating circumstances;
- under extenuating circumstances.
This is an important division of the crime in question. Indeed, depending on the type of murder, the court will make one or another decision to punish the accused. It is easy to guess how exactly the severity of the sanctions applied to the violator is distributed. The minimum terms are for simple murders, the maximum - for crimes with aggravating circumstances.
General classification of crimes
What other classifications apply to a term such as murder? The concept, types, brief description of these actions are very important points. Therefore, it is worth paying more detailed attention to the qualification of the perfect act. In modern Russian legislation distinguish:
- manslaughter;
- qualified;
- privileged.
Qualified and privileged killings are understood to mean aggravating or mitigating circumstances. After all, the correct sentence can be pronounced only taking into account these features. The concept, symptoms and types of homicide include several more types of classification. For example, according to the direction of actions, crimes can be distinguished:
- by negligence;
- intentional.
By the number of participants:
- homicide committed by one person;
- group (conspiracy);
- organized group.
By the number of victims:
- with one victim;
- massacre (2 or more victims).
Aggravating circumstances
But these data are still not enough to determine exactly what punishment should be imposed on the offender for the act committed. What else needs to be paid attention to? The concept and types of intentional homicide include extenuating and aggravating circumstances. Therefore, it is worth paying attention primarily to the second type of causing death to a person. Indeed, in this case, the punishment is handed down in a more severe form than in all other outcomes. These are the rules of Russian law.
An aggravated murder includes a crime committed against two or more persons. According to Art. 105 (Clause 2) of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, such an act will not form a chain of causing deaths. Just such a murder will be regarded as an act with aggravating circumstances. They also include:
- murder in relation to an official and his relatives who performed official duty or public duty;
- causing death to a helpless juvenile;
- killing a pregnant woman;
- with particular cruelty;
- murder, which was carried out in a manner dangerous to society;
- blood feud;
- by conspiracy;
- for hire;
- with robbery, blackmail, banditry;
- hooliganism;
- murder to cover up another crime;
- because of hostility due to political, ideological and national differences;
- killing to use the body of the deceased as an organ donor.
All of the above circumstances are aggravating. They impose more serious penalties on the offender than mere murder. But the features of the crime do not end there.
Privileged killings
Now you need to pay attention to the concept and types of privileged killings. This type of crime is not very common, but it does occur. Moreover, it can be attributed to the class "with extenuating circumstances." This murder is usually classified as a separate concept. The types of privileged killings are diverse.
These crimes include the following:
- committing thereof after childbirth;
- in a state of affect;
- when exceeding self-defense measures.
In all cases except the last paragraph, the citizen is in a condition that can hardly be called sane. Therefore, circumstances can be considered mitigating. Read more about them below.
Manslaughter
The above is information that reveals the concept and types of killings. Moreover, the basic classifications of crime are also now known. What is privileged murder and aggravated death (qualified), we also examined. And then what is considered a simple type of crime?
Such killings include causing death to a citizen in the absence of aggravating and mitigating circumstances. We can say that this is a crime committed without good reason, self-employed and in absolutely adequate condition. In fact, in practice, simple killing is not too common. After all, if you look closely at the corpus delicti, its motive plays a huge role. Often, a simple murder can be attributed to a qualified one, if there is evidence of aggravating circumstances.
What else is worth paying attention to? A simple murder, the concept and types of which are not very diverse, qualifies when it is committed:
- out of jealousy;
- in a quarrel or fight (not from hooligan motives);
- due to complicated personal relationships between the offender and the victim, revenge, envy, hostility, hatred.
After childbirth
Pay attention to the features of privileged killings. They include extenuating circumstances and bring a lot of problems in litigation. The first case is the killing of a baby immediately after birth.
Under such circumstances, the object of the crime is the life of the baby. A newborn child is considered from the moment of completion of labor and at the end of 4 weeks after that.
But to the objective side of the issue include several points. Firstly, it is possible that the child was killed immediately after or directly during labor. It doesn’t matter whether the intent was in advance or whether the desire to cause death arose immediately after the completion of the physiological process.
Secondly, if there is an offense under traumatic conditions. It can be anything: a difficult financial situation, fear of parents, father's abandonment of the baby, and so on.
Thirdly, it is possible that the murder was motivated by a temporary mental disorder that does not abolish the sanity of a citizen. Such a crime occurs when the mother, killing the child, as a result of her condition did not realize and could not assess the social danger of actions. And even more so, to resist their fulfillment.
The subject of the crime is the mother of the newborn (regardless of age), and the subjective side is characterized by direct or indirect intent. It is these features that killing immediately after birth has.
The heat of passion
Particular attention will have to be given to murder committed in a state of passion. This is a mitigating circumstance, but its presence must be proved. But it is worth noting that this is not always possible. The object of a crime is the life of a citizen who caused this condition to a criminal. The objective side includes:
- a state of intense emotional disturbance that appeared suddenly;
- affect is caused by: violence, insults, humiliation, illegal or immoral acts, prolonged stay in an unfavorable psychological environment caused by the actions of the victim.
Surprise is characterized by:
- the appearance of affect immediately after the acts of the victim;
- there is no temporary difference between the crime and the actions of the victim.
Affected intent is usually called the subjective party, and the subject in this situation is a citizen who is in a state of affect.
Defense
Almost came to an end the discussion of the topic: "Murder: concept, types, brief description." It remains to consider the last type of privileged crime. Namely, perfect when exceeding defense measures.
The objective side of the crime is characterized by an encroachment on the life and health of the killer, and the object is the life of the detainee (if the murder was committed during detention) or the offender who attacks the health.
The subjective side is direct or indirect intent, and the subject is a person who reflects an attack or performs the process of detaining someone.
Punishment
The article discloses in detail the concept, types of intentional murder, as well as a similar crime, but committed in the state of affect or under other extenuating circumstances. With what terms and sanctions is this crime punishable?
The Criminal Code (Article 105) indicates that simple murder is punishable by imprisonment of 6–15 years, and may additionally set a suspended sentence of 24 months. If we are talking about a qualified crime, you will have to pay for it for a period of 8 to 20 years and get a maximum of 2 years of freedom. If there is a murder of exceptional gravity, then the term may be life-long.