Under California criminal law, murder is homicide with malice aforethought whereas manslaughter is homicide without malice aforethought. Malice aforethought is acting with a specific intent to kill the victim or with a conscious disregard for life.
Example: Mark’s dog has a history of nipping people’s ankles. After letting his dog off-leash at a park, the dog attacks a child’s throat and kills him. Here, Mark would likely face manslaughter rather than murder charges.
Mark had no intent to kill the child, and the dog never seriously harmed anyone before, so Mark reasonably believed the dog was not lethal. Therefore, there was no malice aforethought. However, a jury might find that unleashing a biting dog around children, resulting in one of them being killed, rises to the level of manslaughter.
Because murder is a more severe felony crime than manslaughter, the prison sentence is much longer. The most serious murder cases can even carry the death penalty (though California currently has a moratorium on executions).1
Below I explain what you need to know about the California crimes of murder, manslaughter, and how they differ.
Murder
Murder, which is killing a person with malice aforethought, is divided under California law into first-degree murder and second-degree murder.
First-Degree Murder
For you to be convicted of first-degree murder in California, prosecutors must prove that you committed homicide by either:
- using a destructive device or explosive, a weapon of mass destruction, ammunition to penetrate metal or armor, or poison; or
- lying in wait; or
- inflicting torture pursuant to PC 206; or
- a willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing; or
- Felony murder, which is directly killing someone while committing certain felonies (such as rape, robbery, or burglary).
California’s penalty for first-degree murder is 25 years to life in state prison.
Capital Murder
In California, capital murder refers to first-degree murder with at least one special circumstance.” Some of these “special circumstances” include killing a police officer, killing for financial gain, or killing in a drive-by shooting.
Capital murder carries life without the possibility of parole (LWOP). Though if the jury finds at least one “aggravating circumstance” that outweighs all the “mitigating circumstances,” the court can impose the death penalty. Currently, no executions are being carried out in California.
Second-Degree Murder
Second-degree murder comprises homicides where there is malice aforethought but no premeditation or deliberation. The behavior that lead to the killing was so dangerous that any reasonable person would have known that death was likely to result.
Classic second-degree murder scenarios are playing Russian roulette or firing a gun into a crowd. Even if death was not premeditated, it was extremely foreseeable.
Second-degree murder carries a base sentence of 15 years to life in California State Prison. However, if you shoot from a vehicle with the intent to seriously injure, the minimum penalty is 20 years.
Note that if the victim is a peace officer, the minimum penalty is 25 years. However, the sentence becomes life without the possibility of parole if you either:
- intended to kill or seriously injure the officer; or
- used a deadly weapon.2
Murder is a more serious crime than manslaughter.
Manslaughter
Manslaughter, which is killing a person without malice aforethought, is divided under California law into voluntary manslaughter and involuntary manslaughter.
Voluntary Manslaughter
Voluntary manslaughter is the unlawful but intentional killing of someone, without malice aforethought. This comprises deliberately killing someone either:
- during a sudden quarrel or in the heat of passion; or
- based on an honest but unreasonable belief in the need to defend yourself (called “imperfect self-defense“).
The classic voluntary manslaughter scenario is a husband unexpectedly walking in on his wife in bed with another man and immediately killing them. Though the killing is intentional, there was no time to “cool off” and premeditate it because it occurs so suddenly after being provoked.
The penalty for voluntary manslaughter is:
- 3, 6, or 11 years in California State Prison; or
- probation with up to 1 year in county jail.
Involuntary Manslaughter
Involuntary manslaughter is the unlawful and unintentional killing of another person through criminal negligence. This is reckless behavior that any reasonable person would know creates a high risk of death or great bodily injury.
One of the most famous examples of involuntary manslaughter in California is Michael Jackson’s doctor prescribing him surgical anesthetics that eventually killed him. Of course the doctor had no harmful intentions, but he should have known the high risks of harm.
California’s penalty for involuntary manslaughter is:
- 2, 3, or 4 years in jail; or
- probation with up to 1 year in jail.
Vehicle Manslaughter
Unintentionally killing someone by negligent driving is prosecuted as vehicular manslaughter in California. This can be a felony or a misdemeanor depending on the degree of negligence, your prior criminal record, and whether you were intoxicated.3
Murder can be pleaded down to manslaughter.
Murder vs. Manslaughter
The following table summarizes the differences between murder and manslaughter in California:
| CALIFORNIA LAW | Murder | Manslaughter |
| Requires you to act with malice aforethought | Yes | No |
| Requires you to act with premeditation or deliberation | Yes for 1st-degree murder, but not for 2nd-degree murder | No |
| Common defenses | No malice aforethought, self-defense, police misconduct, insanity | No criminal negligence, self-defense, police misconduct, insanity |
| Convictions can carry a life sentence | Yes | No |
| It is a type of homicide | Yes | Yes |
There is no such thing as attempted involuntary manslaughter.
Frequently Asked Questions
What exactly is the difference between “homicide” and “murder”? Are they separate crimes?
Homicide is not a specific criminal charge itself; rather, it is an overarching umbrella term that simply means the act of causing the death of another person. Murder and manslaughter are the actual, specific criminal charges that fall under the broader category of homicide.
Are there financial penalties for murder and manslaughter, or just prison time?
In addition to severe prison or jail sentences, convictions for both murder and manslaughter carry heavy financial consequences in California. You can be ordered to pay thousands of dollars in criminal fines as well as mandatory victim restitution.
Is there a specific list of acts that constitute second-degree murder?
Under California law, second-degree murder actually operates as a broad “catch-all” or umbrella category. It is any murder that does not meet the specific, escalated requirements of first-degree murder (such as premeditation, poison, lying in wait, or felony murder).
If a homicide qualifies as murder but lacks those specific first-degree factors, it defaults to the second degree.
Can a murder charge be reduced to manslaughter?
Yes. Because the line between the two charges often depends on complex subjective factors—such as whether there was “malice” or whether a provocation was severe enough to trigger a “heat of passion”—defense attorneys frequently work to convince the district attorney or a jury to reduce a murder charge down to voluntary or involuntary manslaughter.
Can I be charged with murder if I did not directly kill anyone?
Yes. Under California’s felony murder rule, if someone dies during the commission of certain dangerous felonies (such as robbery, arson, or burglary), other participants in the felony can potentially be charged with murder.
However, prosecutors must prove you were a “major participant” who acted with reckless indifference to human life, or that you aided the actual killer with the intent to kill.
What is the difference between attempted murder and assault?
The difference comes down to your specific intent. To convict you of attempted murder, prosecutors must prove a specific intent to kill, plus a “direct step” toward committing the killing. Assault, however, only requires the intent to commit a violent act—not necessarily the intent to end the person’s life.
If I kill someone in self-defense, is it still considered a homicide?
Yes, but it is considered a justifiable homicide. “Homicide” simply means the killing of a human being. If the court finds that you reasonably believed deadly force was necessary to prevent imminent harm to yourself or someone else, the killing is legally justified. In that scenario, you would not be guilty of murder or manslaughter.
Is there such a thing as “attempted manslaughter”?
Yes. Just as a murder charge can be reduced to voluntary manslaughter if the act occurred in the “heat of passion” or due to an unreasonable belief in self-defense (imperfect self-defense), an attempted murder charge can be reduced to attempted voluntary manslaughter under those same emotional or provoked circumstances.
Additional Reading
For more in-depth information, refer to these scholarly articles:
- Evil and the Law of Murder – U.C. Davis Law Review
- How Should We Punish Murder – Marquette Law Review
- What Future for Voluntary Manslaughter? – The Journal of Criminal Law.
- Manslaughter and the Adequacy of Provocation: The Reasonableness of the Reasonable Man – University of Pennsylvania Law Review.
- The psychology and law of voluntary manslaughter: what can psychology research teach us about the “heat of passion” defense? – Behavior Decision Making.
- Some Provoking Aspects of Voluntary Manslaughter Law – Common Law World Review.
Legal References
- Lara v. Ryan (9th Cir. 2006) 455 F.3d 1080. Executive Order N-09-19, State of California.
- California Penal Code 187 PC; California Penal Code 188 PC; California Penal Code 189 PC. California Penal Code 190 PC. People v. Lopez (Cal. 2026) No. S287814.
- California Penal Code 192 PC. California Penal Code 193 PC. People v. Borchers (Cal. 1958) 50 Cal.2d 321. People v. Wilmot (Cal. App. 2026) No. B338493.
