Question | Answer |
the killing of another person; it can be criminal, noncriminal, or negligent | homicide |
ill will; deliberate intent to harm someone | malice |
murder planned in advance and done with malice or during the commission of a dangerous felony | first-degree murder |
the killing of someone during the commission of certain felonies, regardless of intent to kill (which is usually required for a murder charge) | felony murder |
murder that does not require malice or premeditation but is the result of a desire to inflict bodily harm; it is done without excuse, and is therefore more serious than manslaughter | second-degree murder |
murder, when intentional but not premeditated, resulting from the heat of passion or the diminished mental capacity of the killer | voluntary manslaughter |
murder, when unintentional but done during an unlawful act of a lesser nature | involuntary manslaughter |
causing death through criminally negligent behavior | negligent homicide |
the failure to exercise a reasonable amount of care in either doing or not doing something, resulting in harm or injury to another person | negligence |
the deliberate taking of one's own life | suicide |
an intentional threat, show of force, or movement that causes a reasonable fear of, or an actual physical contact with, another person; can be a crime or a tort | assault |
any intentional, unlawful physical contact inflicted on one person by another without consent; in some states, this is combined with assault | battery |
the act of following or harassing another person, causing fear of death or injury | stalking |
unwelcome sexual contact against another individual committed through the use of force, threat, or intimidation, or enabled because the victim is incapacitated due to drugs, alcohol, or mental disability | sexual assault |
unlawful sexual intercourse; it is committed when one party forces another party to have sexual intercourse; it implies lack of consent | rape |
the act of unlawful sexual intercourse by an adult with someone under the age of consent, even if the minor is a willing and voluntary participant in the sexual act | statutory rape |
sexual assault by someone known to the victim, such as a date or neighbor | acquaintance rape (date rape) |