Editing Murder (section)

=== Degrees <span class="anchor" id="Degrees of murder"></span><span class="anchor" id="Murder in the second degree"></span> ===
{{Redirect2|Murder in the second degree|Premeditated murder|the album|Murder in the Second Degree{{!}}''Murder in the Second Degree''|the film|Premeditated Murder{{!}}''Premeditated Murder''}}
Some jurisdictions divide murder by degrees. The distinction between first- and second-degree murder exists, for example, in [[Murder (Canadian law)|Canadian murder law]] and [[Murder (United States law)#Degrees|U.S. murder law]]. Some US states maintain the offense of [[capital murder]].

The most common division is between first- and second-degree murder. Generally, second-degree murder is common law murder, and first-degree is an aggravated form. The aggravating factors of first-degree murder depend on the jurisdiction, but may include a specific intent to kill, premeditation, or deliberation. In some, murders committed by acts such as [[strangulation]], [[poisoning]], or [[lying in wait]] are also treated as first-degree murder.<ref>Murder in the First and Second Degree (14–17)
A murder which shall be perpetrated by ... poison, lying in wait, imprisonment, starving, torture, or by any other kind of willful, deliberate and premeditated killing or which shall be committed in the perpetration or attempted perpetration of any arson, rape or sex offense, robbery, kidnapping, burglary, or other felony committed or attempted with the use of a deadly weapon, shall be ... murder in the first degree ... and shall be punished by death or life imprisonment ... except that any person ... under 17 years of age at the time of the murder shall be punished with imprisonment ... for life.
All other kinds of murder, including that which shall be proximately caused by the unlawful distribution of opium or any synthetic or natural salt, compound, derivative, or the preparation of opium ... cause the death of the user, shall be ... murder in the second degree and ... shall be punished as a Class C felony
</ref> A few states in the U.S. further distinguish [[Murder in United States law#Degrees|third-degree murder]], but they differ significantly in which kinds of murders they classify as second-degree versus third-degree. For example, Minnesota defines third-degree murder as [[depraved-heart murder]], whereas Florida defines third-degree murder as [[felony murder]] (except when the underlying felony is specifically listed in the definition of first-degree murder).<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1427&context=flr|first=Frank|last=Brenner|title=The Impulsive Murder and the Degree Device|journal=Fordham Law Review|volume=22|issue=3|year=1953|access-date=2018-03-13|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180313214239/https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1427&context=flr|archive-date=2018-03-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://statelaws.findlaw.com/minnesota-law/minnesota-second-degree-murder.html|title=Minnesota Second-Degree Murder|website=findlaw.com|access-date=2018-03-13|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180314043759/http://statelaws.findlaw.com/minnesota-law/minnesota-second-degree-murder.html|archive-date=2018-03-14}}</ref>

Some jurisdictions also distinguish premeditated murder. This is the [[crime]] of wrongfully and intentionally causing the death of another human being (also known as murder) after rationally considering the timing or method of doing so, in order to either increase the likelihood of success, or to evade detection or apprehension.<ref>{{cite web|title=Premeditation|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/premeditation|website=Merriam-Webster|access-date=10 September 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170910082842/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/premeditation|archive-date=10 September 2017}}</ref> State laws in the United States vary as to definitions of "premeditation". In some states, premeditation may be construed as taking place mere seconds before the murder. Premeditated murder is one of the most serious forms of homicide, and is punished more severely than manslaughter or other types of homicide, often with a [[life imprisonment|life sentence]] without the possibility of [[parole]], or in some countries, the [[capital punishment|death penalty]]. In the U.S., [[United States federal law|federal law]] ({{USCSub|18|1111|a}}) criminalizes premeditated murder, felony murder and second-degree murder committed under situations where federal jurisdiction applies.<ref>{{cite web|title=Title 18 USC, Sec. 1111, Murder|url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1111|website=Legal Information Institute|publisher=Cornell Law School|access-date=10 September 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170910040431/https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1111|archive-date=10 September 2017}}</ref> In Canada, the [[Criminal Code (Canada)|criminal code]] classifies murder as either first- or second-degree. The former type of murder is often called premeditated murder, although premeditation is not the only way murder can be classified as first-degree. In the [[Netherlands]], the traditional strict distinction between premeditated intentional killing (classed as murder, ''moord'') and non-premeditated intentional killing (manslaughter, ''doodslag'') is maintained; when differentiating between murder and manslaughter, the only relevant factor is the existence or not of premeditation (rather than the existence or not of mitigating or aggravated factors). Manslaughter (non-premeditated intentional killing) with aggravating factors is punished more severely, but it is not classified as murder, because murder is an offense which always requires premeditation.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0001854/2023-01-01|title=Wetboek van Strafrecht|first=Ministerie van Binnenlandse Zaken en|last=Koninkrijksrelaties|website=wetten.overheid.nl}}</ref>