Murder in Florida constitutes the intentional killing, under circumstances defined by law, of people within or under the jurisdiction of the U.S. state of

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

Generally

, a person is guilty of first-degree murder when it is perpetrated from a premeditated design to result in the death of a human being. A person is also guilty of first-degree murder if they cause the death of any individual during the commission of a predicate felony regardless of actual intent or premeditation. This is called

felony murder The rule of felony murder is a legal doctrine in some common law jurisdictions that broadens the crime of murder: when someone is killed (regardless of intent to kill) in the commission of a dangerous or enumerated crime (called a felony in s ...

. This offense is categorized as capital offense, so if convicted, the offender could possibly receive the

death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...

. The United States

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgi ...

reported that in the year 2020, the state had a murder rate slightly above the median for the entire country.

Felony murder rule

In the state of

, the

common law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...

felony murder rule has been codified in Florida Statutes § 782.04.McCarthy, K.E. ''Felony Murder.'' Connecticut General Assembly Office of Legislative Research.

First degree murder

The predicate

felonies A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that resu ...

that will support a charge of

first degree murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse, especially the c ...

under the statute are: *

Drug trafficking A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via insuffla ...

Arson Arson is the crime of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, wat ...

Sexual battery Battery is a criminal Offence (law), offense involving unlawful physical contact, distinct from assault which is the act of creating apprehension of such contact. Battery is a specific common law offense, although the term is used more general ...

Robbery Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take anything of value by force, threat of force, or by use of fear. According to common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the perso ...

home invasion A home invasion, also called a hot prowl burglary, is a sub-type of burglary (or in some jurisdictions, a separately defined crime) in which an offender unlawfully enters into a building residence while the occupants are inside. The overarching ...

robbery *

Burglary Burglary, also called breaking and entering and sometimes housebreaking, is the act of entering a building or other areas without permission, with the intention of committing a criminal offence. Usually that offence is theft, robbery or murder ...

Kidnapping In criminal law, kidnapping is the unlawful confinement of a person against their will, often including transportation/asportation. The asportation and abduction element is typically but not necessarily conducted by means of force or fear: the p ...

*Escape *Aggravated abuse of a child, elderly person, or disabled adult *

Aircraft piracy Aircraft hijacking (also known as airplane hijacking, skyjacking, plane hijacking, plane jacking, air robbery, air piracy, or aircraft piracy, with the last term used within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States) is the unlawfu ...

*Unlawful throwing, placing, or discharging of a destructive device or bomb *

Carjacking Carjacking is a robbery in which the item taken over is a motor vehicle.Michael Cherbonneau, "Carjacking," in ''Encyclopedia of Social Problems'', Vol. 1 (SAGE, 2008: ed. Vincent N. Parrillo), pp. 110-11. In contrast to car theft, carjacking is ...

*Aggravated

stalking Stalking is unwanted and/or repeated surveillance by an individual or group toward another person. Stalking behaviors are interrelated to harassment and intimidation and may include following the victim in person or monitoring them. The ter ...

*Murder * Resisting an officer with violence to his or her person *Felonious acts of terrorism or in furtherance of an act of terrorism *Distribution of some controlled substances like cocaine and opium

Second degree murder

The statute also punishes as second degree murder the killing of another human being during the commission of a felony that is imminently dangerous to human life. Also, if the defendant was involved in the commission of a predicate felony, but the homicide was perpetrated by another co-felon, the defendant can be charged with second degree murder.

Attempted felony murder

Florida also recognizes the offense of attempted felony murder, codified in F.S. § 782.051. The offense punishes those that act in a way that can kill another person during the commission of one of the predicate felonies.

Penalties

Source: If a person committing a predicate felony directly contributed to the death of the victim then the person will be charged with murder in the first degree - felony murder which is a capital felony. The only two sentences available for that statute are life in prison and the death penalty. If the defendant was under 18, a judge sets a maximum term of 40 years and they are eligible for a review of their sentence after 25 years. If a person commits a predicate felony, but was not the direct contributor to the death of the victim then the person will be charged with murder in the second degree - felony murder which is a felony of the first degree. The maximum prison term is life.''The Florida Statutes.'' If the defendant was under 18, a judge sets a maximum term of 30 years and they are eligible for a review of their sentence after 25 years.

References

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External links

Text of the statute from the Florida Legislature
Murder in Florida U.S. state criminal law Florida law