California’s Voluntary and Involuntary Manslaughter Laws

What Is the Difference Between Voluntary and Involuntary Manslaughter?

California’s Voluntary and Involuntary Manslaughter Laws

Besides the punishment upon conviction, the most significant difference between voluntary and involuntary manslaughter is the intent to kill. While murder requires “malice aforethought,” voluntary manslaughter includes deaths caused by heats of passion or sudden fights where you intended to kill another person.

Involuntary manslaughter, on the other hand, is when you cause someone else’s death during a crime that is not inherently dangerous. It also includes deaths that occur when you commit a lawful act in an unlawful way.

Voluntary Manslaughter Includes Intent To Kill

In California, both murder and voluntary manslaughter charges can result when you:

  • Kill another human being intentionally; or,
  • Consciously act with a disregard for human life.

The difference comes from whether you were in a sudden quarrel or heat of passion. California considers these circumstances when your killing is after:

  • Someone provoked you;
  • You responded to the provocation poorly due to intense emotions that affected your judgment; and,
  • A reasonable person in your situation would have also reacted poorly out of
  • passion rather than judging the situation.

There are no bright-line rules for what makes a provocation sufficient for a response to be considered to occur in the heat of passion. However, if you have time to cool down or cool off between the sudden quarrel or event and when you kill the other, you may be guilty of murder. That is because during that time, your temper should have calmed, and you could have regained the ability to think clearly.

Involuntary Manslaughter Requires No Intent

You commit involuntary manslaughter in California when:

  • You commit a crime that is not inherently dangerous or another misdemeanor or
  • infraction, or take a lawful act in an unlawful manner;
  • Your actions were done with criminal negligence; and,
  • Those actions resulted in another person’s death.

You can also commit involuntary manslaughter if someone else’s death results from your failure to carry out a legal duty. To convict you under this law, a California prosecutor must prove that you:

  • Had a relationship with the victim that created a legal duty;
  • You did not perform that legal duty;
  • This failure was criminally negligent; and,
  • The failure to perform the duty caused their death.

Legal duties that fall under this law include:

  • A parent to a child.
  • A paid caretaker’s responsibility to those in their care.
  • If you have “assumed responsibility” for another individual.

This assumed responsibility can be created when you personally allow someone to be put in harm’s way and then do not assist them. It should be noted that California has different laws for any manslaughter deaths that involve vehicles.

Punishments for Voluntary and Involuntary Manslaughter

Beyond the difference in intent requirements, another distinction between voluntary and involuntary manslaughter is how they are punished.

Both are always felonies in California, but a judge can order probation after an involuntary manslaughter conviction. If not probation, you will face two, three, or four years in jail.

Probation is not available after a voluntary manslaughter conviction. Your sentence will be served in California state prison for three, six, or eleven years. There are additional punishments, such as fines or even a strike towards California’s three-strikes law.

Are you or someone you love facing voluntary or involuntary manslaughter charges in Fountain Valley, California? The experienced criminal defense attorneys at Chambers Law Firm can create a strategy for defending you against the allegations. A free initial consultation is easy to schedule, just call 714-760-4088 or email dchambers@clfca.com.

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