Suicide or murder- scenario?

Question

This is a hypothtical situation I saw on a programme.
If I was to plan to commit suicide and then go to a tree in my garden, to use it as a gallows. I place my head in the noose and get on with it. Someone then comes along and finds me, and shoots me- is it suicide or murder? What statutory points would be taken into consideration??

Answer 1

It's murder. There is an old classic case that they discuss in school about this. If a person is a sleep and you shoot them but in fact they had died in their sleep but you didn't know that until later, is it still murder? Yes it is, because the indent to kill the person was there whether you know if he was already dead or not. The same thing if a person commits suicide by jumping of the building but you shot him before he hits the grown is it murder? Yes, because your intent is to kill that person.

Basically, the most important thing that the law cares about is whether you had the intent to kill the person or not, if you did it is murder if not then it is a lesser degree of murder or manslaughter. In your head you always thought the person was alive (in the first case above), so you thought you killed someone but you didn't know until later.

This also goes for the person who is about to commit or committed suicide you thought he was alive, you wanted to KILL him therefore your guilty of murder.

Answer 2

This is very similar to the hypothetical situation of a man being shot while falling off of a tall building. The crime would indeed be murder. In you case, if it can be shown that you were already dead, then the defence could possibly get the crime reduced to attempted murder, which is the same crime as murder except for the final result. However, in that second case, suicide is also the proper ruling.

Answer 3

Murder

Answer 4

This was on Law and Order already. Its murder.
Motive and state of mind are always talked about on tv crime shows. What if the person thought you were a squirrel?
The defense lawyer then would parade a group of witness that would testify the suspect was a whacked out hunter.

Answer 5

Probably depends on what actually kills you. If you are already dead, then it would not be murder. That person could be charged with reckless discharge of a firearm. Why would they shoot the person if they were already dead, though? If the hanging person was not already dead, it should still be murder.

Interesting question

Answer 6

first off were u dead from hanging, if u were it called abusive corps. That means a person is dead and another person does something to the corps. If u were still alive it's murder

Answer 7

yea wow, thats one hell of a question. well if you weren't dead and this person shoots and kills you, obviously it is murder. and the police will know how it went down. if you were already dead from hanging yourself, i'm sure this shooter would still be arrested for attempted murder, or just murder, seeing as his intention was to kill you.

Answer 8

Murder is when someone ends another persons life, regardles of how they do it and what they use. So if you were dead it can not be classed as murder. . . . . The End!

Answer 9

in the event that they actually theory they have been killing you it could be homicide. the regulation states that a criminal offense is commited while a individual believes themselves to be commiting a criminal offense. in case you have been nevertheless alive on the time of the shooting then it would definately be seen homicide, via fact on the time of the shooting you had no longer commited suicide you basically tried suicide.

Answer 10

like if you was dead at the time of the shooting maybe. because if you was dead it cant be murder or and if you were alive at the time of the shooting it would not be suicide or