Different Types of Manslaughter Charges in California
In California, manslaughter charges are broken up into three categories: voluntary manslaughter, involuntary manslaughter, and vehicular manslaughter. Each of these is a serious offense that is charged because someone else died from your alleged actions, but the level of fault and culpability is different for each type of charge.
Manslaughter is generally defined under CA Penal Code § 192 as “the unlawful killing of a human being without malice.” This is in contrast with the definition of murder in California, which is “the unlawful killing of a human being … with malice aforethought.” This lack of malice makes manslaughter a less severe crime than murder, but each type of manslaughter is still a serious offense.
Voluntary Manslaughter
Voluntary manslaughter is the most serious manslaughter offense. This type of manslaughter occurs when the actor kills someone “upon a sudden quarrel or heat of passion.” That means that if you kill someone during a fight or because you were mad or provoked, you could be charged with voluntary manslaughter.
The law sees this heat of passion or quarrel as an excuse for the killing that reduces your culpability. If you intentionally kill someone, it is murder, but serious anger or a fight can cloud your judgment and reduce your fault in the death. For this reason, voluntary manslaughter is often used to “plea down” murder charges to a lesser offense if the actor was provoked into killing the victim.
Involuntary Manslaughter
Involuntary manslaughter occurs when you cause someone’s death while doing something illegal or that you knew was dangerous and could cause death. If you were in the process of committing a crime that was not a serious felony, and someone died, you are held responsible for their death with involuntary manslaughter charges. Additionally, if you ignore the dangers and consequences of a course of action and ultimately end up killing someone, you are similarly responsible for the death under this statute.
Vehicular Manslaughter
Vehicular manslaughter is similar to involuntary manslaughter, but it covers death involving the use of an automobile. This means that if you were committing a violation and killed someone in the accident or you did something extremely dangerous that caused someone’s death, you can be charged with vehicular manslaughter. This can also cover deaths involving the operation of a boat or other vessel.
There is an additional crime under Penal Code § 191.5 for gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. This covers manslaughter that occurs in conjunction with a drunk driving offense, and it has higher penalties than typical vehicular manslaughter.
