The word “murder” is enough to set most people’s nerves on edge. It has been regarded, since pre-Biblical times as being a high crime, but always with culturally specific caveats and exceptions. Here is a brief review of some of the more commonly used ways to reason murder as being OK.
Definitions:
There are two primary ‘types’ of definitions of what we call Murder. The first is “Common Law” which has only two sections/criteria that are 1) The act of killing a person, and 2) that the act is somehow purposeful, intentional, premeditated and/or ‘wanton.’ (Random mayhem, etc.) In jurisdictions where this set of criteria are used, there is no need for further clarification or qualification and every instance is judged on it’s individual circumstances taking those two basic precepts into account.
More commonly, the second and universally more complex definitions of “Murder” tend to be less precise and clear and far more complicated by guidelines for arguable legal exclusions as well as defined categories of mitigating circumstances (including mental incapacities, self-defense, non-intentionality and diminished capacity among many others.)
No matter what the applied rules are, murder always has one thing in common. It involves the willful taking of one human’s life by another human. Looked at from this perspective, we must acknowledge that there are a lot of things that happen that are technically ‘murder,’ but some of these are socially allowed for if not actually sanctioned and encouraged.
In these situations, we try to avoid using the word ‘murder’ and try to call it something else. Something that sounds less like a heinous crime committed by one person against another. Without judgment, I think it important to reflect on where and when we think about murder as being different – so call it something different – so that we can live with it more easily.
To cite just a few examples (adapted from www.wikipedia.com) :
Murder In The Course Of War:
Usually an accepted exception – within some varying constraints such as those suggested (but never approved by the United States) by the Geneva Accords. Murder of the enemy in war is governmentally sanctioned killing.
Murder By A Person Deemed Not Capable Of Determining Right From Wrong:
This is an oversimplification of an old English standard for determining legal sanity called the “McNaughten Rule.” More fully, it says that if a person cannot distinguish between right and wrong OR can, but is unable due to mental defect, to conform his/her behavior appropriately, then the Insanity (or Diminished Capacity) defense may be applicable in murder situations.
Murder At The Request Of a Pregnant Mother Of An Unborn Child:
Whether one holds the point of view of the “Right To Life” folks or feels strongly about what we term “A woman’s right to choose,” it is a murder. It may be, depending on one’s views, a justifiable and acceptable one – but, by definition, it is a murder none-the-less. The deliberate taking of a human life..
Self Defense:
Most countries and jurisdictions provide for murder (homicide) to be regarded as crime-free (non-prosecutable and non-punishable) if a person can prove that they murdered another person in the necessary act of defending themselves. This defense is often precarious, especially in the absence of eye witnesses, but is not an uncommon one.
Unintentional:
There are a multitude of types of death caused by one person to another that are legally regarded as ‘accidents’ of one sort or another. So while such things as Involuntary Vehicular Manslaughter (killing a person by accident with a car or in some car accidents) is still, by Common Law, murder – many jurisdictions across the globe regard it as being either forgivable or a lesser offense than deliberate homicide.
Justifiable Homicide:
This is one of the most varied of the categories mentioned here. It can (and does) include things like finding a person having broken into your home or finding another person in bed with your spouse. In some parts of the world, a woman being openly disrespectful to her husband frees him to murder her without legal consequences. These and many other circumstances that are culturally driven and specific, justify murder in varying parts of the country and the world.
Some Life Is Worth Less Than Others:
Whether in arguments made by the German Nazis, those promoting genocides around the world today or others, a certain relative judgement is often inferred – if not overtly expressed – that differentially defines human life. Doing so makes murder sometimes OK and sometimes not, depending on whether or not the murdered life is to be legitimately and fully regarded as a ‘human being.’
So, murder is murder. Or is it?
If the taking of one life by another is sometimes OK and sometimes is not, does that not suggest a degree of obvious capriciousness that tends to undermine the core concept. Again, this is without judgment, but is a phenomenon pretty easy to observe and difficult to not comment on.
