RCW 9A.16.030
Homicide — When excusable.
Homicide is excusable when committed by accident or misfortune in doing any lawful act by lawful means, without criminal negligence, or without any unlawful intent.
[1979 ex.s. c 244 § 8; 1975 1st ex.s. c 260 § 9A.16.030.]
If someone is doing something within the law, without negligence, and without criminal intent, then HOW is it possibly to commit an excusable homicide? If you're driving your car in a lawful manner, and some guy jumps out in front of your car and gets killed? Is that an example? How about shooting your gun at a shooting range, and someone jumping in front of your bullet? These are the only kinds of examples I can think of, but they're pretty extreme to the point to where I don't think anyone would do it, unless they're comitting suicide or something.
alion300
Sometimes people just get careless.
My mother's friend was killed a few months ago in the parking lot of
a supermarket. A driver hit her with his car. He wasn't drinking or speeding or anything illegal,and he wasn't charged. It was just ruled an accident. These things happen sometimes.
rightstuff
You gave two good examples of excusable homicide. Homicide does not mean an illegal act. Homicide simply means you killed another person. A soldier commits homicide but it is excused. An executioner commits homicide. Your two points show that you can commit homicide by accident(without criminal intent). You can commit homicide by misfortune. You buy some pills and your spouse takes your pills by mistake (misfortune) and dies. That is excusable. As long as what you were doing was legal (lawful act). You were not speeding (unlawful act). And you were not trying to kill the other person. If you were traveling down the road and someone jumped in to the road and you had time to stop and did not stop then you would be guilty of reckless conduct that took another life. (Homicide) Just remember homicide is not illegal it is just a term meaning someone has been killed.
CountyMounty
Your on the right track Gerald and other good examples have been given. It happens all the time. There are many car pedestrian accidents every year that are accidental homicides. People dressed in dark clothing walking at night, people trying to run across the freeway, people trying to flag down a car, etc etc. There are many more regular car accidents a year in which people die and no one is charged with a crime such as when the person who died is at fault or it was simply an unavoidable accident. How about a hunter who is legally hunting and fires his gun and the bullet hits someone beyond his target that was not visible to him that he had no idea was there, it has happens in fact it almost happened to me one day, I was a couple feet from being shot by another hunter who did not know I was there.
How about UFC fighting or wrestling someone could accidently commit homicide in that.
There are many many situations in which one can technically commit homicide by accident or "misfortune". Unfortunately this defense can be overused because as you alluded to I think often times there is some sort of negligence or at the very least lack of common sense involved and people get away with it.
Definition of homicide
Main Entry: ho·mi·cide
Pronunciation: \ˈhä-mə-ˌsīd, ˈhō-\
Function: noun
Etymology: in sense 1, from Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin homicida, from homo human being + -cida -cide; in sense 2, from Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin homicidium, from homo + -cidium -cide
Date: 14th century
1 : a person who kills another
2 : a killing of one human being by another
Orignal From: Q&A: What does this law mean?
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