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From: hollombe@ttidcc.UUCP (The Polymath)
Newsgroups: net.flame,net.politics,net.legal,net.auto
Subject: Re: DWI Crackdowns
Message-ID: <626@ttidcc.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 5-Aug-85 14:23:36 EDT
Article-I.D.: ttidcc.626
Posted: Mon Aug  5 14:23:36 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 6-Aug-85 06:07:38 EDT
References: <202@SCIRTP.UUCP> <378@kontron.UUCP> <1455@mnetor.UUCP> <269@SCIRTP.UUCP>
Reply-To: hollombe@ttidcc.UUCP (The Polymath)
Distribution: net
Organization: The Cat Factory
Lines: 29
Xref: linus net.flame:10569 net.politics:9616 net.legal:1612 net.auto:6488
Summary: 

In article <269@SCIRTP.UUCP> todd@SCIRTP.UUCP (Todd Jones) writes:
>>     Why not ... when someone drunk kill an innocent bystander, charge
>> them with murder. That's what it is, really!
>
>No Fred, it's manslaughter, and drunk drivers who kill anyone
>*can* be charged with manslaughter.

The distinction between murder and  manslaughter  rests  primarily  on  the
presence  or  absence  of premeditation and intent.  It has been ruled that
premeditation can occur in under 1 second.  If a drunk  accidentally  kills
someone,  that's  manslaughter.  If  they decide to kill someone and do so,
that's murder.

Actual case:

A man was sitting on his motorcycle in the  2nd  position  in  a  left-turn
lane.  A  drunk  driver entered the intersection from his right and ran him
down, _going behind the car in  front  of  him  to  do  so_.  Three  police
officers  witnessed  the  incident.  The  drunk driver was charged with 1st
degree murder.  I never did hear the final verdict in the case. (The victim
was an instructor at the Northrop Institute of Technology).

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_
The Polymath (aka: Jerry Hollombe)
Citicorp TTI                      Common Sense is what tells you that a ten
3100 Ocean Park Blvd.             pound weight falls ten times as fast as a
Santa Monica, CA  90405           one pound weight.
(213) 450-9111, ext. 2483
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