What is a first degree manslaughter in Texas?

Answer 1

Texas doesn't officially use the terms "first degree murder" or "second degree murder," though these terms are sometimes informally used incorrectly. Texas has six potential charges for someone having caused the death of another person (including four types of criminal homicide): (1) murder, (2) capital murder, (3) manslaughter, (4) criminally negligent homicide, (5) intoxication manslaughter, and, (6) capital sabotage. (Remember 'homicide' does not necessarily mean 'murder'.) The terms 'voluntary' or 'involuntary' manslaughter are no longer used in Texas ('sudden crime of passion' used to be classified as voluntary manslaughter, but is now an affirmative defense to murder). Confusion arises because Texas has the categories capital murder (death penalty or life imprisonment with no parole) which is called a capital felony, murder which is a first-degree felony (or second-degree felony for a sudden crime of passion), manslaughter which is a second-degree felony, and criminally negligent homicide which is a state-jail felony. When most people say "first degree murder" they probably mean a murder offense which might result in the death penalty for the perpetrator-but, in Texas, that is called capital murder and is classified, along with capital sabotage, as a capital felony. When most people say "second degree murder" they likely mean a murder that would not result in the death penalty for the perpetrator- that is now classified as straight murder in Texas and is a first-degree felony-but others might mean voluntary manslaughter, as well. Very confusingly, in Texas we can have a "first degree felony murder" and one has to parse that phrase very carefully in context to interpret just what it means. One possible interpretation is 'first degree' as the modifier for 'felony murder.' However, 'felony murder' is a term-of-art in law and means something specific-committing a homicide in the course of committing another felony such as robbery or kidnapping. But 'felony murder' is an old term and now falls under our capital murder statute, and it wouldn't make much sense, in Texas, to say the equivalent of "first degree capital murder"-that would be an oxymoron. The much more likely correct interpretation is 'first degree felony' as the modifier for 'murder.' But, now, that would be redundant-straight murder is already defined as a first degree felony under the statute. Saying "first degree felony murder" in Texas is equivalent to saying just "murder". Further, we don't have "second-degree-felony murder" in Texas. We could have "second-degree-felony homicide" which would now be straight manslaughter (or could be 'sudden passion' murder, as well as intoxication manslaughter.) Texas Penal Code (emphasis added) 19.01. TYPES OF CRIMINAL HOMICIDE. (a) A person commits criminal homicide if he intentionally, knowingly,recklessly, or with criminal negligence causes the death of an individual. (b) Criminal homicide is murder, capital murder, manslaughter, or criminally negligent homicide. 19.02. MURDER. . . . (b) A person commits an offense if he: (1) intentionally or knowingly causes the death of an individual; (2) intends to cause serious bodily injury and commits an act clearly dangerous to human life that causes the death of an individual; or (3) commits or attempts to commit a felony, other than manslaughter, and in the course of and in furtherance of the commission or attempt, or in immediate flight from the commission or attempt, he commits or attempts to commit an act clearly dangerous to human life that causes the death of an individual. (c) Except as provided by Subsection (d), an offense under this section is a felony of the first degree.(d) At the punishment stage of a trial, the defendant may raise the issue as to whether he caused the death under the immediate influence of sudden passion arising from an adequate cause. If the defendant proves the issue in the affirmative by a preponderance of the evidence, the offense is a felony of the seconddegree. 19.03. CAPITAL MURDER. (a) A person commits an offense if the person commits murder as defined under Section 19.02(b)(1)and: (1) the person murders a peace officer or fireman who is acting in the lawful discharge of an official duty and who the person knows is a peace officer or fireman; (2) the person intentionally commits the murder in the course of committing or attempting to commit kidnapping, burglary, robbery, aggravated sexual assault, arson, obstruction or retaliation, or terroristic threat under Section 22.07(a)(1), (3), (4), (5), or (6); (3) the person commits the murder for remuneration or the promise of remuneration or employs another to commit the murder for remuneration or the promise of remuneration; (4) the person commits the murder while escaping or attempting to escape from a penal institution; (5) the person, while incarcerated in a penal institution, murders another: (A) who is employed in the operation of the penal institution; or (B) with the intent to establish, maintain, or participate in a combination or in the profits of a combination; (6) the person: (A) while incarcerated for an offense under this section or Section 19.02, murders another; or (B) while serving a sentence of life imprisonment or a term of 99 years for an offense under Section 20.04, 22.021, or 29.03, murders another; (7) the person murders more than one person: (A) during the same criminal transaction; or (B) during different criminal transactions but the murders are committed pursuant to the same scheme or course of conduct; (8) the person murders an individual under six years of age; or (9) the person murders another person in retaliation for or on account of the service or status of the other person as a judge or justice of the supreme court, the court of criminal appeals, a court of appeals, a district court, a criminal district court, a constitutional county court, a statutory county court, a justice court, or a municipal court. (b) An offense under this section is a capital felony. (c) If the jury or, when authorized by law, the judge does not find beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant is guilty of an offense under this section, he may be convicted of murder or of any other lesser included offense. 19.04. MANSLAUGHTER. (a) A person commits an offense if he recklessly causes the death of an individual. (b) An offense under this section is a felony of the seconddegree. 19.05. CRIMINALLY NEGLIGENT HOMICIDE. (a) A person commits an offense if he causes the death of an individual by criminal negligence. (b) An offense under this section is a state jail felony 49.08. INTOXICATION MANSLAUGHTER. (a) A person commits an offense if the person: (1) operates a motor vehicle in a public place, operates an aircraft, a watercraft, or an amusement ride, or assembles a mobile amusement ride; and (2) is intoxicated and by reason of that intoxication causes the death of another by accident or mistake. (b) Except as provided by Section 49.09, an offense under this section is a felony of the second degree. Texas Government Code (emphasis added) 557.012. CAPITAL SABOTAGE. (a) A person commits an offense if the person commits an offense under Section 557.011(a) and the sabotage or attempted sabotage causes the death of an individual. (b) An offense under this section is punishable by: (1) death; or (2) confinement in the institutional division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for: (A) life; or (B) a term of not less than two years. (c) If conduct constituting an offense under this section also constitutes an offense under other law, the actor may be prosecuted under both sections.