Also known as: malice aforethought · malitia praecogitata
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A historical Latin term denoting the premeditated or deliberate mental state required for common law murder. It encompasses an intent to kill, an intent to inflict grievous bodily harm, extreme recklessness showing a depraved heart, or an intent to commit a felony.
Professor Max locked a laboratory door and wrapped an extension cord around student Preston's neck. He pulled with sustained force on the throat for several minutes after Preston went limp. The prolonged targeting of a vital area supplied the mental state that turned the killing into murder.
Deckhand Maxwell waited for a stormy night and deliberately cut Captain David's safety line. He stood by without assisting as David was swept overboard and drowned. The calculated act demonstrated the required mental state for murder.
Financial adviser Aidan locked a conference room door and struck analyst Alfred repeatedly in the head with a heavy stapler until Alfred lost consciousness. Alfred later died from a brain hemorrhage. The sustained blows to the head established the mental state needed for murder.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Loss-prevention officer Marshall tackled suspected shoplifter Uriah and repeatedly stomped on his chest. Uriah suffered fatal internal injuries. The repeated blows to a vital area allowed the factfinder to infer the mental state required for murder.
Nurse Walter injected an elderly patient with an unauthorized sedative to clear a path while conspiring to steal hospital equipment. The patient died from respiratory arrest during the theft. The intent to commit the underlying felony supplied the mental state for murder.
Dennis Davis was charged with killing Sol Blackwell after evidence showed he acted with the required mental state. The defense introduced testimony of unsound mind at the time of the act. The jury still found the mental state present and returned a murder verdict.
The term is the historical Latin label for the same mental state now called malice aforethought. Primary authorities define it through the same four categories of intent that still govern common law murder.
Supporting sources
No. The mental state can form in an instant. The authorities treat deliberate intent shown at the moment of the act as sufficient.
Supporting sources
Yes. When a defendant intentionally directs a deadly weapon at a vital part of the body, the factfinder may infer the required mental state without additional evidence of subjective planning.
Supporting sources
…(1975), in which we invalidated a Maine statute that presumed that a defendant who acted with an intent to kill possessed the "malice aforethought" necessary to constitute the State's murder offense (and therefore, was subject to that crime's associated punishment of life imprisonment). The statute placed the burden on the defendant…