Defenses to Attempted Murder Charges

Defenses to Attempted Murder Charges:  Attempted murder is an extremely serious charge.  If you are convicted of this offense, you could face decades in prison.  Fortunately, our skilled attorneys at Marinaro Law have over 20 plus years experience of successfully defending clients facing attempted murder with results of not guilty.  I want to share with you have we can defend you in the event you are accused of attempted murder.  What is Attempted Murder?  Attempted murder is the incomplete, unsuccessful act of killing a person.  Although the elements appear to be straightforward, some issues of the attempted murder charge may lead to a dismissal or result in a reduction of the charges to a lesser included such as aggravated assault.  In PA, the Commonwealth bears the burden of proving you guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.  

Direct Action is Required:  Any act that is directly done in order to complete an intent to kill is a direct step.  Merely preparing to kill someone or planning to do so is not sufficient to satisfy the elements of attempted murder.  The required direct or substantial step may consist of using a weapon against someone such as a gun or knife, either inflicting serious injury or firing a weapon into an area of the body most likely to cause death, such as someone’s head or chest.   Other examples of acts that show intent to murder are stalking or luring someone to a specific location where you intended to murder them or buying materials necessary to commit a murder, such as the making of a bomb, and then driving to the persons home to carry it out.

Specific Intent to Kill is Required: