How UK could adopt US-style murder offences under new plans

How UK could adopt US-style murder offences under new plans The Law Commission has put forward that mandatory life sentences for murder should be abolished - Bookmark The UK could introduce American-style first- and second-degree murder charges under plans proposed by the government’s independent legal advisory body. In its new report, the Law Commission has put forward that mandatory life sentences for murder should be abolished, and reserved only for those who commit first-degree murder. These are cases where the accused intended to kill their victim, the body of experts said. Meanwhile, second-degree murders are defined as those in which the killer had intended to cause serious injury rather than death, or had a ‘partial defence’ like diminished responsibility due to mental health. The Law Commission was asked to review the offences by home secretary Shabana Mahmood while in her previous post as justice secretary. It said the changes would introduce a “more proportionate framework that reflects the degrees of culpability of offenders”. It comes after Valdo Calocane, who fatally stabbed three people in Nottingham in 2023, was convicted of manslaughter for the offence on the grounds of diminished responsibility. The changes would mean that he could have instead been charged with second-degree murder on the basis of his “partial defence”. He was sentenced to an indefinite hospital order. The families of the three victims – Barnaby Webber, Grace O’Malley-Kumar and Ian Coates – have previously expressed frustration at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) decision to charge Mr Calocane with manslaughter. The Court of Appeal rejected an application in 2024 to increase the killer’s sentence to include jail time. Calling for the law to be changed last year, Mr Webber's mother Emma said not doing so continues to mean that “murderers will get away with murder”. The commission also makes proposals to introduce new offences for controlling or coercive behaviour which contributes to the victim’s suicide, for supplying unlawful drugs which results in the victim’s death, and for a culpable failure to seek medical assistance or intervene where death results. What would the three categories of homicide be? - First-degree murder – where the defendant intended to kill. Life imprisonment is mandatory, as is the case now. - Second-degree murder – where the defendant killed with the intention of causing serious injury. This offence would come with a second tier, when the defendant is charged with first-degree murder but a partial defence proved successful. - Manslaughter – comprising reckless manslaughter, unlawful dangerous act manslaughter and gross negligence manslaughter. Cases of unlawful killing where there was no intent to kill or cause serious injury. What issues could arise? The proposals would mark one of the most substantial changes to homicide law in the history of England and Wales, with major implications for the work of legal practitioners. The central difference would be the need for the defence, prosecution and jury to consider the distinction between ‘intent to kill’ and ‘intent to cause serious injury’, taking on board the option of three, rather than two, homicide offences. This is “principled in theory but difficult in practice”, said Kally Sahota, founder of Sahota and Sahota Criminal Defence Solicitors. “In many homicide cases, juries are being asked to assess a state of mind in a fast-moving, chaotic and often violent situation. “Jurors can and do make difficult decisions every day. However, expecting a clear distinction in every homicide case between an intention to kill and an intention to cause serious injury may be unrealistic. In many cases, the evidence will be capable of pointing both ways.” The criminal defence solicitor adds that the law at present can be “unsatisfactory” and could lead to fairer convictions through giving juries a “more nuanced set of options”. These must be explained to them properly, Mr Sahota added. Submitting evidence to the consultation, the Prison Reform Trust wrote that it agrees with the proposals “in principle” but is concerned about how they may work “in practice”. In particular, the group raises concerns about the expanded use of discretionary life sentences, which may bring a risk of “sentence inflation” for offences currently classified as manslaughter. This would be “catastrophic for already overcrowded prisons,” it added, “as well as dragging more individuals into sentences that lack purpose, hope or effectiveness”. Launching the consultation, Prof Penney Lewis, the commissioner for criminal law, said: “Homicide offences in England and Wales have never been the object of a coherent and structured reform and the law has not kept pace with what society now understands about culpability, domestic abuse and the consequences of dangerous conduct. “This review offers a timely opportunity to modernise the law and to build a fairer and more proportionate framework that reflects the degrees of culpability of offenders. We want to hear from as many people as possible with experience in this area before we make our final recommendations.”