In English tradition murder was defined as the willful killing with malice aforethought of a human creature in being, the death occurring within a year and a day of the injury . The old English rule extended this concept to include not only intentional or deliberate killings but also accidental killings in the course of some other serious crime (such as robbery or rape).
This rule, the felony murder rule, was adopted in many other jurisdictions , although it has often produced harsh results when death has been caused accidentally in the course of what was intended to be a minor crime. Similar problems have arisen in many U.S. jurisdictions, some of which distinguish between different degrees of murder – first — degree murder may require proof of premeditation over and above the normal requirement of intention. By the way, murder and manslaughter are not mentioned in the Koran and are subject in Islamic countries to customary law as amended by Shari`ah. [ Manslaughter is the crime of the killing someone illegally but not deliberately.
Shari`ah is a system of religious laws followed by Muslims]. Virtually all systems treat murder as a crime of the utmost gravity, providing in so me cases the death penalty or a special form of sentence, such as a life sentence. A high proportion of murders in all societies is committed spontaneously by persons acquainted with the deceased, often a member of the same family, as a result of quarrels or provocation.
Notes:
murder – тяжкое убийство (убийство, совершенное с заранее обдуманным злым умыслом)
injury – телесное повреждение
manslaughter – непредумышленное убийство
customary law – обычное право
accidental – случайный
premeditation – преднамеренность
malice aforethought – заранее обдуманный злой умысел
jurisdiction – юрисдикция, полномочия; судебная практика;