Murder is a heinous crime. Most horrible is First Degree Murder where the killing is planned and deliberate. When First Degree Murder is charged in Los Angeles County or anywhere in California, it means that one individual has specifically targeted, plotted, planned and executed the killing of another individual. Killing that occurs during the commission of a felony such as arson, burglary, robbery, mayhem, carjacking, kidnapping, train wrecking, rape, sodomy and other sex crimes, or drive-by shooting is considered premeditated, or planned, and charged as first degree murder, explains expert Los Angeles criminal defense attorney Stephen Rodriguez.
When murder occurs without premeditation; that is, without advance planning, it is charged as Second Degree Murder. Experienced murder defense attorney Rodriguez explains that second degree murder is charged in cases where violent and malicious force causes the death of the victim even when the killing blow was not planned or necessarily intended to kill. Examples include using a gun or knife in a fight, swinging a baseball bat that accidentally connects with the victim's head, shooting a gun into a crowded room, extremely reckless driving and drag racing. Even though the defendant did not plan the killing blow, he did choose to act maliciously and violently toward the victim.
A murder charge can result in 15 or 25 years to life in prison depending on whether first or second degree murder is charged. In certain circumstances in California, the defendant can be sentenced to death or life in prison without the possibility of parole. While murder is an unconscionable crime certainly deserving of such sentences, not every individual charged with murder is guilty. Law enforcement officers do not always discover the truth. Every week brings news reports of innocent individuals convicted of murder who after sitting on death row for years are suddenly exonerated by new evidence. Too often, these individuals never received the experienced, knowledgeable legal defense to which they were entitled. Their lives have been wasted and the real killers have gone free.
To prevent such egregious miscarriages of justice, every individual who is accused of murder in Los Angeles County or anywhere in California is entitled to a strong defense, says well-known L.A. criminal defense lawyer Stephen Rodriguez. While experience counts in all criminal cases, in murder cases the stakes are so high and the court proceedings so involved and complicated that it is essential that murder defendants engage the services of criminal defense attorneys who have specific and long-standing experience defending murder cases.
On Wednesday: How does a criminal defense attorney defend against a murder charge?
