Murder is considered a serious crime in our country. The umbrella term of murder implies that a person intentionally killing another human being is known as the worst type of violent crime we see in our society. Any unlawful killing requires that a living person be killed and this does not mean that the perpetrator feels hatred or contempt for planning and carrying out the act of murder. Additionally, destructive acts that end people's lives are classified as homicides which include manslaughter and first- and second-degree murder. More importantly, the justice system has assigned different labels to such crimes, but it also leaves room for criminals to get away with murder. A person accused of unlawful killing in a court of law may be charged with manslaughter by the prosecutor. Because there are different scenarios in which an unlawful killing can occur, there are different charges that arise from the type of circumstances surrounding each case. That is, first and second degree murder charges come into play as the killer in question will have to be measured to tell the public and/or jury whether or not his intent was premeditated. Additionally, the law uses another general term called manslaughter, which also has two divisions. According to Gerald and Kathleen Hill's People's Law Dictionary, there are two types of manslaughter. "The first type is manslaughter (first degree) which is defined as murder resulting from a malicious act, committed with or without malice or premeditation, which occurred in the throes of passion or sudden provocation". (Hill) An example would be a husband catches his wife in bed with another man and kills the man before switching on...... middle of paper...... the system is overflowing with many cases of violent crimes, but it doesn't seem rational to have a system where there are cases where a first-degree murder has occurred and the sentence doesn't match the violation. I believe if you take a life, you deserve a life sentence in prison. Allowing criminals to get away with murder is something that will harm us all. If we live in a world where this continues to happen, the system will fail to do its job of protecting our cities from the worst kind of criminals. .2006.Dreisbach, Daniele. Encyclopedia "Criminal Law" Msn Encarda Department of Justice, Law and Society, AmericanUnivercity.2005Hill, Geraldand Kathleen Dictionary Law.com