Also known as: first degree · 1st-degree · first degree murder · first-degree felony
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
2 senses
A descriptor for the primary actor who personally commits the act or omission constituting a felony. The label distinguishes this direct participant from secondary aiders present at the scene and from those who assist only before or after the offense.
A descriptor for the primary actor who personally commits the act or omission constituting a felony. The label distinguishes this direct participant from secondary aiders present at the scene and from those who assist only before or after the offense.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
A descriptor for the most serious category of felony, carrying the heaviest penalties. The classification applies when a statute or code grades an offense such as kidnapping or rape at this level based on specified aggravating elements.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
A descriptor for the most serious category of felony, carrying the heaviest penalties. The classification applies when a statute or code grades an offense such as kidnapping or rape at this level based on specified aggravating elements.
Each sense below has its own examples, sources, and questions.
Flora Ford smashed the lock on a tool trailer and removed equipment while Frederick Ferguson waited nearby in a running truck ready to signal any approach. After the theft, Francesca Fowler arranged resale and concealed records. At common law the classifications turn on who performed the core acts, who aided while present, and who assisted only afterward.
Fumiko Fujimoto entered the warehouse alone, loaded laptops into a vehicle, and drove them away. Other participants supplied plans or distracted guards but did not perform the taking. Liability as principal in the first degree requires personal commission of the criminal act itself.
Fairfield Bank stood at the warehouse entrance and distracted the guard while Flagship Logistics loaded stolen goods inside. The assistance occurred at the scene during the crime. Classification as principal in the first degree requires personal commission of the criminal act itself.
A principal in the first degree personally commits the criminal act. A principal in the second degree aids or encourages while present at the scene. The distinction rests on who performs the essential acts versus who assists contemporaneously.
Supporting sources
Faye Fuller directed a locked vehicle across state lines and confined Farah Fox in a remote cabin for three days with armed guards to halt regulatory pressure. The confinement lasted a substantial period in isolation and served an unlawful purpose. Under the Model Penal Code the offense grades as first-degree unless the victim is released alive and safe before trial.
Foster Forge engaged in non-consensual intercourse with a woman he had just met at a party. He inflicted serious bodily injury during the act. The injury elevates the offense to rape graded as first-degree under the Model Penal Code.
Fusion Power received a mandatory life term without parole for a first-degree offense. The defendant had no prior violent record. The Eighth Amendment analysis examines whether the sentence is grossly disproportionate to the crime and to sentences for other offenses in the jurisdiction.
Kidnapping is a felony of the first degree unless the actor voluntarily releases the victim alive and in a safe place prior to trial. The release must occur before trial begins.
Supporting sources
Rape becomes a felony of the first degree when the actor inflicts serious bodily injury or when the victim was not a voluntary social companion and had not previously permitted sexual liberties. Either aggravating circumstance raises the grade from second to first degree.
Supporting sources
…and the confession at the last interrogation were introduced in evidence. The jury found Stewart guilty of robbery and first degree murder and fixed the penalty as death. On appeal, the Supreme Court of California reversed. 62 Cal. 2d 571, 400 P. 2d 97, 43 Cal. Rptr. 201. It held that under this Court's decision in Escobedo ,…