Intentional homicide is the deliberate and unlawful killing of one person by another, resulting in the termination of the victim’s life.
The protected legal interest in the crime of intentional homicide is undoubtedly the right to life of the individual.
One of the oldest crimes that societies have deemed punishable in various ways is undoubtedly the crime of killing or murder. Since the act of killing involves terminating someone’s life, laws generally consider the act of killing a crime in order to protect human life against others. The severity of the penalties for committing this crime aims to reduce the societal reaction to such acts, prevent revenge, and ultimately prevent chaos.
The basic form of intentional homicide is defined in Article 81 of Law No. 5237 of the Turkish Penal Code.
“The person who intentionally kills another person shall be sentenced to life imprisonment,” as regulated in the law.
In determining intent in the crime of intentional homicide, the Court of Cassation in practice takes into account the actions and circumstances of the perpetrator before, during, and after the incident.
The reasons and nature of the animosity between the perpetrator and the victim, The nature of the tool used in the crime, The number and distance of shots or blows, The location, nature, and quantity of the wounds inflicted on the victim’s body, The availability of the opportunity to choose a target, The course and cause of the incident, Whether there was an external factor beyond the perpetrator’s will that prevented the commission of the crime, The position, distance, and visibility of the victim, These are the criteria considered in determining intent.
There must be a causal link between the perpetrator’s act and the occurrence of death. The death must result from the act that the perpetrator intentionally carried out. There must be a causal connection between the outcome of death and the act, and the situation must be determined.
To determine the perpetrator’s intent, it is necessary to consider the specific circumstances and actions exhibited by the perpetrator during the commission of the act. The perpetrator must have intent to commit the crime at the stages of initiation, continuation, and completion of the crime. The deciding authority, in determining the perpetrator’s intent in the specific circumstances, will examine the relationship between the perpetrator and the victim, examine the place, time, and manner of the crime, and make findings to determine the existence and intensity of intent. The deciding authority must eliminate all doubts regarding the perpetrator’s intent and be able to dispel any doubts about the existence of intent.
The jurisdiction for intentional homicide falls under the jurisdiction of the Serious Crimes Court. The simple form of intentional homicide covered in Article 81 will be tried by the Serious Crimes Court, while the aggravated forms regulated in Article 82, which provide for aggravated life imprisonment, will also be tried by the Serious Crimes Court.
Aggravated Circumstances: The aggravated circumstances of intentional homicide are limited and specified in the law. The prescribed punishment for aggravated forms of intentional homicide is the most severe sanction, which is “aggravated life imprisonment.”
When committed with premeditation, With monstrous feeling or causing torment, By using fire, flood, destruction, sinking, or bombing, or by using nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons, Against an ancestor, descendant, spouse, former spouse, or sibling, Against a child or a person who is unable to defend themselves physically or mentally, Against a woman, Due to the performance of the person’s public duty, To conceal a crime, eliminate evidence, facilitate its commission, or avoid capture, Due to a state of rage caused by the inability to commit a crime, With a motive of revenge, With a motive based on traditions, If committed, the person shall be punished with aggravated life imprisonment.
Unjust Provocation: If there is unjust provocation in the act of intentional killing, reductions will be applied according to the proportions specified in Article 29 of the Turkish Penal Code. Although the reductions to be applied are discretionary, a court decision without any reduction can be overturned by the Court of Cassation.
Acts of severe assault against oneself or loved ones, Acts threatening life, Mass attacks, Crimes committed against one’s own or close relatives’ sexual integrity, acts contrary to sexual loyalty, honor, modesty, and trust, Acts violating the inviolability of the residence or privacy of family and private life, Acts of unjust behavior that seriously damage commercial and social reputation, Unjust acts targeting the property under one’s responsibility, can be cited as examples of behaviors that constitute unjust provocation.
Murder by Exceeding the Limits of Intention: The offender may act with the intention to commit the act of killing, but the victim may not die in the end, or the offender may intend to commit the crime of intentional injury, but the victim may die. In the first case, the offender’s attempt to commit murder with intent is at issue, and in the second case, causing death as a result of intentional injury.
In practice, determining the direction of the offender’s intention is extremely difficult without any doubt. Therefore, there are certain criteria that have gained consistency in Court of Cassation decisions regarding the proof of the offender’s intention. The offender’s behavior before, during, and after the incident provides guidance for determining the offender’s intention.
If the offender’s intention is to cause injury but death occurs as a result, the offender will be punished in accordance with Article 87/4 of the Turkish Penal Code. If death occurs as a result of intentional injury, imprisonment ranging from eight to twelve years will be imposed for the circumstances covered by the first paragraph of Article 86, and from twelve to eighteen years for the circumstances covered by the third paragraph.
Grounds of Legality: The existence of the crime of intentional killing depends on the illegality of the killing action. When the killing action results from the exercise of a legitimate authority based on legal rules, the action will not be considered unlawful and therefore will not constitute a crime.
Almost every ground of legality can be applied in terms of the crime of intentional killing. For example, when a state of necessity or legitimate defense is present, the situation of illegality ceases to exist. (Article 25 of the Turkish Penal Code). Similarly, if a death occurs as a result of the police using a firearm in cases specified by law, the action may not constitute a crime. (Law on Police Duties and Powers, additional Article 6). The important point here is that the person exercising the authority must derive that authority from legal rules and must have exercised it within the framework of the prescribed rules. Although the consent of the victim is explicitly stated as a ground of legality in our Penal Code (Article 26/2), the authority to dispose of the right to life is not recognized. Therefore, in cases of euthanasia or killing upon request, illegality does not cease to exist, and the crime of intentional killing is committed.
Legitimate defense, also known as self-defense in colloquial terms, refers to the actions taken to prevent an unjust attack directed at oneself or others, in the moment of the attack and as a result of the circumstances and opportunities. In the Turkish Penal Code, defense is also recognized as a ground of legality. A person who uses counterforce proportionate to repel the attack will be exempt from punishment under the legitimate defense provisions. Since the offender cannot be punished in this regard, the conditions of the attack and defense in legitimate defense are carefully examined. One of the important points is whether the limits of legitimate defense have been exceeded.
All of these aspects are meticulously handled by a defense attorney specializing in serious crimes. Because the defense plays a crucial role in ensuring that a person receives their rights in such situations.
In our office located in İzmit, Kocaeli province, specialized criminal defense attorneys provide consultancy and legal representation services in all criminal cases, including intentional killing-murder cases.