If you are facing murder charges in Connecticut, your freedom is hanging in the balance. Murder is one of the most serious charges that a person can face, and penalties can be as severe as spending the rest of your life in prison. While you may be concerned about the cost of an attorney, this is the time to invest in quality representation. Your life is on the line. You need a lawyer who is as committed to keeping you out of jail as you are. Our experienced Connecticut criminal defense lawyers will fight tirelessly to ensure your rights and interests are represented and that you receive a fair trial and the best possible outcome in your case. Many attorneys have never handled a murder case, others are too afraid to go to trial given the severity of the offense. We don’t have that problem. We are ready to fight any charge. 

Understanding Your Murder Charge 

All crimes are made up of certain elements. Criminal definitions are literal, so if you want to have a sense of how strong your case is, it is important to carefully study the definition of the crime that you are charged with and break it down into pieces. You should then assess how the facts of your case stack up against the elements of the crime. 

You can also begin anticipating how the prosecution may argue for your guilt using the elements of the crime’s definition. By understanding how the prosecution is likely to attack you, you can start thinking about how best to defend against their attacks. The more doubt that you can create with regard to the narrative presented by the prosecution, the more likely you are to secure a not-guilty verdict. 

This is because the standard of proof used by the jury in criminal trials is “beyond a reasonable doubt.” This means that if even one juror has doubt about whether a defendant is guilty of the alleged offense, the defendant should not be convicted of having committed the crime. Your job, therefore, with the help of your attorney, is to create as much doubt about the veracity of the prosecution’s allegations as possible. 

Elements of a Murder Charge 

The Connecticut Criminal Statutes state that murder is committed when a person intentionally causes the death of another individual. The primary element of a murder charge is whether the accused individual actually intended to cause the death of the victim. This intent element is known as mens rea. This means that the person has the state of mind necessary to harm someone intentionally. 

For instance, if someone was carrying a knife and their arm spasmed, causing them to strike the person next to them with the knife, even if the person died, the harm was not intentional. On the other hand, if there is evidence that the defendant did intend to kill the other individual, this will weigh in favor of a murder conviction and will support the prosecution’s case. Much of the litigation in a murder trial will revolve around the defendant’s motivation. This is because the motive is necessary to establish intent, and intent is necessary to establish a murder conviction. 

Defenses to Murder Charges in Connecticut 

There are some affirmative defenses available that may apply in your case if you are facing murder charges. For instance, if you killed someone in self-defense, this may insulate you from conviction if you meet the criteria. For instance, self-defense is a valid defense to a murder charge, assuming that the force used was reasonable based on the perceived threat of harm. This means that if someone threatened to punch you and you shot them, self-defense would not apply because the amount of force that you used was not proportionate or reasonable as compared to the threat of harm. 

Another affirmative defense exists if the defendant killed someone in a moment of extreme shock or emotional disturbance, such as seeing their spouse cheating on them. In these cases, the defendant must not have had time to stop, think, clear their head, or plan between witnessing the triggering event and reacting violently to it. If time passes between the emotionally distributing event and the death, it creates time and opportunity for intent to arise, so murder charges are back on the table. If a defendant killed someone while mentally impaired or mentally ill, this might also have prevented them from having the requisite intent element. There are a lot of factors that go into determining the best defense in your case. For this reason, the most effective way to determine the best defense strategy in your case is to consult with an experienced Connecticut criminal defense attorney who can thoroughly review the facts and circumstances of your case. 

Schedule a Consultation with the Kaloidis Law Firm Today 
If you want a lawyer who will fight fearlessly to get justice for you, contact the experienced criminal defense lawyers at Kaloidis Law Firm today to schedule a consultation.