 ArticlesThe Distinctions and Sentencing for Murder
First degree murder is murder which is planned and deliberate.
Sentencing for first degree murder is very simple. We do not have capital punishment in Canada so a person who is convicted of first degree murder is sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for 25 years. The calculation for those 25 years begins when the person has been arrested and placed in custody, not when they are convicted and found guilty. There is no discretion on the part of the judge; that is the minimum sentence and it is automatic.
It is also important to know that, if you kill a police officer in the course of his duty, it is automatically a first degree charge even if it was not planned and deliberate. If you murder someone in a course of a sexual assault or forced confinement then the charge is also first degree and called constructive first degree murder. You may not have planned it and deliberated about it, but if in the course of a sexual assault, confinement or a kidnapping the victim ends up dying and you are responsible for their death, it is deemed to be first degree murder.
Second degree murder is defined as all other murder other than first degree murder. So, if you do not plan and you do not deliberate about it but you still intend to kill someone, that is second degree murder. The sentencing ranges from life in jail with no parole for 10 years to 25 years until you are eligible for parole. If there are mitigating factors the jury can recommend the minimum.
After the time is served in prison on a sentence for first or second degree murder, you still report to a parole officer for the rest of your life. If you fail any of the requirements that are set out in your conditions of release on parole, there is no hearing and you go right back to jail.
If somebody is committing an illegal act and causes the death of an individual then they are found guilty of manslaughter. Though the person died, there was no intention to cause death. Perhaps, there was only an intention to hurt someone but if a person dies because of that criminal act, the charge is manslaughter. The sentencing options for manslaughter are very complicated because there is no minimum. You can get anything from probation (which is unlikely) to life in jail. Often individuals found guilty of manslaughter will serve medium range penitentiary terms, in the neighbourhood of 7 to 15 years.
If someone is killed as a result of someone’s impaired driving, that is a separate offence. The offence is called “impaired driving causing death.” If, however, the driving is so egregious, as in street racing while impaired, for instance, the charge would be “criminal negligence causing death” and its sentencing will be more severe.
In cases of murder, the sentence is automatically a life sentence whether that’s first degree murder or second degree murder.
In cases of second degree murder, the judge has the ability to fix the period of parole ineligibility anywhere between 10 and 25 years with recommendations from the jury, if they choose to make them. If you’re convicted of first degree murder, you automatically receive a life sentence with parole eligibility at 25 years.
There are also the “faint hope” provisions which in very rare circumstances allow somebody to apply for parole after 15 years, but that’s unusual and not a condition that’s commonly in place. But there is a potential, at least in theory, that if you receive a sentence of life imprisonment with no parole eligibility for 25 years, you can actually apply as soon as 15 years are up. The occurrence of people receiving early parole through what they called the “faint hope” provision is very rare.
Manslaughter, if it’s committed with the use of a firearm, carries a minimum sentence of 5 years. But that is the only condition for a minimum sentence for manslaughter. In other words, if you push somebody down the stairs, not meaning to cause death, but they die tragically, then you are not subject to any minimum sentence. You could receive any sentence at all, including, in theory, a suspended sentence and avoid jail altogether. There are a few examples of people charged with manslaughter who receive what’s called a conditional sentence. Technically, it’s a sentence of imprisonment but you’re permitted to serve it in the community, usually meaning a house arrest sentence. It’s rare, but there have been people who are found guilty of manslaughter and receive a house arrest sentence.
Generally speaking, juries decide whether the person is guilty or not guilty, but judges are the ones who decide the sentence if someone is found guilty by the jury. In decisions of first degree murder, there are no options, so there is no reason to get any kind of recommendation from a jury. In manslaughter, the jury’s recommendation is not sought. But in second degree murder cases, the jurors do have the power to make recommendations or state what they believe the appropriate period of parole ineligibility should be. | 
.jpg&w=50&h=50&zc=1)
