convict and guilty

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jiang

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Dear teachers,Please read the following sentence:After 14-year-old Nathaniel Brazill was convicted of second-degree murder in May for the shooting death of his favorite teacher, he rode back to the Palm Beach County Jail in silence. Tried as an adult, he had faced the possibility of being found guilty of Murder One.My question is:what's the difference between "convict of" and "guilty of" murder one? May I say the former means "charge" while the latter means "sentence"?Looking forward to hearing from you.Jiang
 

GoesStation

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To be found guilty of is a synonym for to be convicted of. They both mean that a court determined that the person committed the crime.
 

emsr2d2

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Dear teachers, (space after a comma) please read the following sentence:

After 14-year-old Nathaniel Brazill was convicted of second-degree murder in May for the shooting death of his favorite teacher, he rode back to the Palm Beach County Jail in silence. Tried as an adult, he had faced the possibility of being found guilty of Murder One.

My question is: What's the difference between "convicted of" and "guilty of" murder one? May I say the former means "charge" while the latter means "sentence"? (Space after a question mark) Looking forward to hearing from you. (Space after a full stop) Jiang

Note my changes above. Remember to put a space after a comma, full stop, question mark or exclamation mark (unless the next character you type is a closing quotation mark).
 

GoesStation

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Note my changes above. Remember to put a space after a comma, full stop, question mark or exclamation mark (unless the next character you type is a closing quotation mark).

...and after a colon.
 

jiang

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Than you very much for your explanation.
Could you please kindly explain why one is "second-degree murder" while the other is "Murder One"?
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Jiang
 

Barb_D

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First-degree murder may be called "murder one." It's a more serious crime than "second-degree murder."

It will vary by state, but it may have to do with whether there was intention to kill someone, or whether someone died while another crime was taking place.
 

jiang

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Dear Barb_D,
Thank you very much for your explanation.
I am afraid I did not express myself clearly.
What I meant was: Why was he convicted of and found guilty of first and second degree murder at the same time?
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Jiang
 

GoesStation

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What I meant was: Why was he convicted of and found guilty of first and second degree murder at the same time?

He wasn't. He was convicted of second-degree murder. He was somewhat relieved because "... he had faced the possibility of being found guilty of Murder One." This possibility did not occur.
 

Tdol

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First-degree murder may be called "murder one." It's a more serious crime than "second-degree murder."

It will vary by state, but it may have to do with whether there was intention to kill someone, or whether someone died while another crime was taking place.

In the UK, we use murder and manslaughter to distinguish between the crimes.
 

Barb_D

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It varies a lot by state.
Even death in a traffic accident might be vehicular manslaughter if you were inattentive and sober, but vehicular homicide if you were drunk.
I believe the general differences include what is intended and what could be foreseen by a reasonable person.
 

Tdol

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Murder includes intent, including the intention to cause serious harm. Manslaughter lacks the intention. (Not a lawyer)
 
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