Murder Penal Code 187

A common law Murder was defined as the unlawful killing of another with malice aforethought.

California Penal Code 187 defines murder as: 

(a) Murder is the unlawful killing of a human being, or a fetus, with malice aforethought.

(b) This section shall not apply to any person who commits an act that results in the death of a fetus if any of the following apply:

(1) The act complied with the Therapeutic Abortion Act, Article 2 (commencing with Section 123400) of Chapter 2 of Part 2 of Division 106 of the Health and Safety Code.

(2) The act was committed by a holder of a physician's and surgeon' s certificate, as defined in the Business and Professions Code, in a case where, to a medical certainty, the result of childbirth would be death of the mother of the fetus or where her death from childbirth, although not medically certain, would be substantially certain or more likely than not.

(3) The act was solicited, aided, abetted, or consented to by the mother of the fetus. (c) Subdivision (b) shall not be construed to prohibit the prosecution of any person under any other provision of law.

Manslaughter is the reduction in the charge between classifications of homicide.
Involuntary Manslaughter -
Voluntary Manslaugter -
Justifiable Homicide -

Defenses
Justification
Self Defense

Defense 
Insanity
The traditional insanity defense as applied under the McNaughton Rule provides that a defendant is entitled to an acquittal in the trial proceedings if the proof establishes the following:

  1. a mental illness
  2. that caused a defect of reason
  3. Such that the Defendant lacked the ability at the time of the criminal action to either know the wrongfulness of his action or understand the nature and quality of his criminal actions. Basically there is a cognitive impairments such that the Defendant did not understand the nature and quality of his criminal actions.

If you are falsely charged with either a Murder please contact a lawyer for assistance. At the Brewer Law firm, criminal defense attorney Mike Brewer has extensive experience with assault and battery cases. As a former prosecutor Attorney Mike Brewer has prosecuted numerous murder cases and as a result knows how the prosecution views and prosecutes these very serious charges. In addition prior to going into private practice, Attorney Mike Brewer was public defender who zealously represented numerous assault and battery type cases. Please feel free contact a criminal defense attorney for more information and to arrange for a consultation with an experienced, skilled and well respected criminal defense attorney who can analyze the criminal charges brought against you and zealously represent your interests.

Serving Southern California throughout Los Angeles & Orange County, in communities such as Long Beach, Newport Beach, Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, West Los Angeles, Culver City, Santa Monica, Inglewood, Torrance, Redondo Beach, San Pedro, Compton, Norwalk, Downey, Bellflower, Whittier, Westminster, Fullerton, Orange, Santa Ana, Laguna Niguel and Airport – LAX.