In your criminal trial proceedings, the prosecution may be accusing you of causing the death of another individual. With this, though, you may either be defending yourself against a murder or manslaughter conviction. Without the need for further introduction, please follow along to find out the differences in penalties for murder and manslaughter charges and how one of the experienced New Jersey & Pennsylvania criminal defense lawyers at The Vigilante Law Firm, P.C., can help you evade them at all costs.
What are the penalties for murder in the state of New Jersey?
Generally speaking, the New Jersey criminal code defines murder as the unlawful killing of another human being with malice aforethought. This is to accuse you of intentionally causing the death of another individual, or otherwise purposefully causing serious bodily injuries that ultimately resulted in their death. This is typically charged as a first-degree crime and associated with imprisonment for anywhere between 30 years and a lifetime. And with that, parole eligibility may only be possible after serving at least 30 years of this sentence, if made available at all. This is in addition to a fine of up to $200,000 and other serious punishments.
How are the penalties for manslaughter different?
Contrastingly, manslaughter may be viewed as the unlawful killing of another human being through reckless and negligent conduct. In other words, there was no intent behind your actions. Otherwise, it may be considered a killing done in the “heat of passion.” This means that you may have been provoked by extenuating circumstances that would even cause a reasonable individual to lose self-control and respond in the same manner. Regardless, if you are found guilty of this, you may be hit with a second-degree criminal offense. This may come with a prison sentence of anywhere between five and 10 years, along with a fine of up to $150,000 and more.
However, after reviewing the sequence of events that took place before the death of an innocent individual, the New Jersey criminal court may have reason to upgrade your charge to aggravated manslaughter. This may apply if the court finds that you acted with an extreme indifference to human life. Or, that you caused the death of another individual while fleeing or attempting to flee law enforcement. In this case, similar to murder, you may be charged with a first-degree criminal offense. Although your prison sentence may only fall in the range between 10 to 30 years, but it still holds a $200,000 fine.
Do not let your legal initiatives stop after reading this blog. The next action you should take is calling us at The Vigilante Law Firm, P.C., and retaining the services of one of the experienced New Jersey & Pennsylvania criminal defense lawyers. Rest assured, we will take the reins from here on out.
