Felony Murder I

Felony Murder I

Begin examining the felony-murder rule and the kinds of felonies that will trigger the rule when a death occurs during their commission.

Transcript

In this lesson, we'll introduce the felony-murder rule, starting with the basic concept and its limitations.

I. Generally

At common law, the felony-murder rule said that a defendant may be convicted of murder if the killing occurred during the commission or attempted commission of a felony. In jurisdictions that recognize degrees of murder, felony murder is often treated as a form of first-degree murder.

Felony murder isn’t an independent crime in the way that murder or manslaughter are....