Homicide is a very serious charge, and it is best to know all the details surrounding your case and the possible defenses that might be useful to you in your trial. Just because you are charged with homicide does not mean that you are guilty. In fact, one source sites that not all homicides are crimes. Due to some jurisdictions laws, there is not a national consensus of rules or names of related or similar crimes, therefore it is important to know what synonymous state names are given in correlation to homicide charge. There are several degrees of charges within each jurisdiction; these tend to be consistent throughout state laws and range from first degree to third-degree charges, first-degree being the most severe punishment murder while third-degree is the least of these natures. Homicide can be called anything from murder to manslaughter.

In order for murder to be first-degree, there must be a willful and planned motive for conviction, yet in second-degree murder cases there usually is not a premeditated plan to have murdered a person. One source describes second-degree murder as a type of killing that happens as passion or the "heat of the moment" starts to rise. Yet, what makes first and second degree murder different is the premeditated will that a first-degree murder court requires; this means that someone who is charged with homicide in the first-degree must have had a plan previous to the murder. The length of time that a plan of murder has been in place does not vary the sentence, therefore their plan may have been in place for months or an hour before they committed the crime. Also, in certain states, second-degree murder may be sentenced as voluntary manslaughter.

If your state has manslaughter charges, they are slightly different than charges entitled homicide are murder: manslaughter is usually a form of unlawful killing, but is a less harsh form of murder. States that have these laws usually categorize this form of punishment into two different spheres: involuntary manslaughter, and voluntary manslaughter. As you may have heard, recently Conrad Murray was sentenced four years for involuntary manslaughter in the state of California and given the maximum sentence of four years in prison; he was sentenced due to his negligence in giving Michael Jackson a fatal dose of medicine to make him sleep. Involuntary manslaughter is a form of punishment where negligence must be proved in order to get a conviction, but there must also be a lack of a malicious or intentional will. Voluntary manslaughter is a more punitive crime and therefore results in more time at a higher level security prison. Voluntary manslaughter, like first-degree murder must have a premeditated or malicious intent for a conviction.

In some cases, homicides are not considered unlawful: many times self-defense may be used legally in order to protect yourself, a loved one, or others for safety. Self-defense usually occurs in situations such as burglary, murder, or rape. Depending on your state laws, it is usually determined that self-defense acquittals are more possible when a lawyer shows that there was just cause to feel threatened and to defend yourself. Some states even allow citizens to defend themselves if the other person seems like they were going to attack but actually were not. It is also important to make sure that the force applied in self-defense was necessary for protection. If you defended yourself with an unnecessary amount of force, it does not bare well should you go to court. You must also remember that should you have used self-defense and killed an attacker, the family of the deceased person is allowed to file a civil lawsuit for the damages and emotional bereavement; this can be claimed for any type of murder or homicide case and cases tend not to require as much evidence as a normal case. If you have any questions, you may want to seek legal sources via the Internet or a law firm's advice.