HB 4346 Intentional discharge

[Tallbear]

HB 4346 of 2013 (http://www.legislature.mi.gov/mileg.aspx?page=getobject&objectname=2013-HB-4346)
Crimes; homicide; intentionally discharging a firearm at a dwelling or an occupied structure; establish as first degree murder. Amends sec. 316 of 1931 PA 328 (MCL 750.316).
Last Action: 3/6/2014 REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON HEALTH POLICY

[GLOCKME]

??? Isn't there already a law against killing someone?

Just adding additional language?

[westcliffe01]

Sounds to me like they want to prosecute the act of firing at a building the same as if someone was in fact killed. 99% of the time no-one might get hit and it could be that they can only hit the shooter with a light charge currently.

[madmathew]

It sounds like a bad bill and when I saw who wrote it, it made me sure that I don't like this one.

[DP425]

Sounds to me like they want to prosecute the act of firing at a building the same as if someone was in fact killed. 99% of the time no-one might get hit and it could be that they can only hit the shooter with a light charge currently.

That isn't how I read it.

The way it reads to me is, if someone is murdered through intentionally firing at a dwelling or occupied building, that would be first degree murder. I seems pretty clear that for it to be first degree murder, a murder must happen; it's in the first few lines.



Sec. 316. (1) A person who commits any of the following is

guilty of first degree murder and shall be punished by imprisonment

for life:

(a) Murder perpetrated by means of poison, lying in wait, or

any other willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing.

(b) Murder committed in the perpetration of, or attempt to

perpetrate, arson, criminal sexual conduct in the first, second, or

third degree, child abuse in the first degree, a major controlled

substance offense, robbery, carjacking, breaking and entering of a

dwelling, home invasion in the first or second degree, larceny of


any kind, extortion, kidnapping, vulnerable adult abuse in the

first and OR second degree under section 145n, torture under

section 85, or aggravated stalking under section 411i, OR

INTENTIONALLY DISCHARGING A FIREARM AT A DWELLING OR AN OCCUPIED

STRUCTURE UNDER SECTION 234B.


My only question is, if you are for some reason, having to shoot at someone to defend yourself who is in the doorway of a dwelling and one of your bullets runs astray and kills someone else in the dwelling, now you're guilty of first degree murder as you have met all of the requirements of this section. Doesn't matter that the action against the shooter was legal. The fact that you were intentionally firing at a dwelling and someone whom you were not authorized by law to use lethal force upon died... you are lumped into the same category as rapists who kill their victims. I'm not saying one shouldn't be held responsible for where their bullets land, but this could potentially result in a pretty serious miscarriage of justice. Everything else in that section, there could not be a reasonable excuse to be participating in the act required to bring about 1st degree murder... except for the shooting at a dwelling... that act MAY be justified.

[westcliffe01]

Did you miss the "OR" in your quote ?

It sounds to me like murder committed blah blah, OR intentionally discharging a firearm at a dwelling blah blah..

It seems a stretch that a judge would decide that a stray shot while in the act of defending yourself in the gravest extreme would be considered "intentionally discharging a firearm at a dwelling" given that the dwelling was NOT your intended target and you would be talking to LE regardless after being in that kind of situation. The dwelling and the person you were shooting at would seem to be completely unrelated to me.

section 85, or aggravated stalking under section 411i, OR

INTENTIONALLY DISCHARGING A FIREARM AT A DWELLING OR AN OCCUPIED

STRUCTURE UNDER SECTION 234B.