Murder in Minnesota

Murder & Homicide...what's the difference? 

The easiest way to describe the differences between murder and homicide is that homicide is the killing of another human being, while murder requires the intent to kill another human being. Homicide can be used to describe any death where another person is at fault, but there are mitigating circumstances that can influence the charge of homicide. When someone is convicted of murder, however, they are not only convicted of a homicide, but also the malicious intent to kill.

Categories of Murder/Homicide:

The main determiner in degrees is how much malicious intent motivated the action.

First degree is the most serious, because it indicates that a person calmly decided to kill another person, decided how to do it, and carried out their murderous plan. These are your intentional murders, especially where the killer lies in wait or plots to kill.

Second degree is less intentional, but it is intentional nonetheless. These can include unforeseen brawls where someone pulls a weapon, where a spouse comes home to find their partner being unfaithful, or where an ordinarily peaceful person is provoked to suddenly lash out.

Third degree usually includes killing that is basically unintentional but that is so negligent that society punishes it. This could include something like a driver who speeds recklessly, loses control, and kills someone else on the roadway; the driver did not intend to kill anyone and probably did not even know the victim, but he was intentionally neglecting laws that are meant to keep people safe on the roadways and caused a death through that law-breaking negligence.

Murder in the News:

64-year-old Byron David Smith was charged with 2 counts of second-degree murder after shooting and killing 2 teenage cousin, Haile Kifer and Nicholas Brady, when they broke into his house on Thanksgiving Day. Smith says this is the ninth burglary of his home. Smith said he was in the basement of his home about 10 miles southwest of Little Falls when he heard a window breaking upstairs, followed by footsteps that eventually approached the basement stairwell. Fearful after several break-ins, Smith said he fired when Brady came into view from the waist down. After he fell down the stairs, Smith shot him again in the face. He then dragged Brady's body into his workshop, then sat down and waited for Kifer. Once he could see her waist at the top of the basement stairs, he shot her and she fell down the stairs. Once she laid at his feet, he attempted to shoot her again but his gun jammed and she laughed at him. "Smith stated that it was not a very long laugh because she was already hurting," according to the complaint. He then shot her multiple times in the chest with his .22-caliber revolver then  dragged her over to her cousin and shot her one final time under the chin. The following day he asked a neighbor to recommend a good lawyer, according to the complaint. He later asked his neighbor to call the police. Minnesota law allows a homeowner to use deadly force on an intruder if a reasonable person would fear they're in danger of harm. Smith told investigators he was afraid the intruders might have a weapon. The article includes a quote from the executive director of the Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association who believed this was more of an execution than a murder. Many people believe that Smith did not need to perform these acts because he should not be in fear for his life but he states he was afraid they may have had weapons. His bond was set at $2 million. The article portrays the murder in a very graphic, blunt nature. 

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/11/26/15458995-minnesota-man-who-killed-teens-in-break-in-charged-with-murder?lite

Murder in the Media

The Silence of the Lambs is a 1991 film about a young FBI cadet must confide in an incarcerated and manipulative killer to receive his help on catching another serial killer who skins his victims.

"Smooth Criminal" is a song by Michael Jackson about a woman named Annie, who has been attacked in her apartment by a "smooth" assailant.