Murder in Arizona law constitutes the intentional killing, under circumstances defined by law, of people within or under the jurisdiction of the U.S. state of Arizona.
In Arizona, a person is charged with murder when the offender knowingly and intentionally causes the death of a person or unborn child. The murder must be premeditated. In the state of Arizona, if one is found guilty of first-degree murder, there is the possibility of receiving the death penalty.[1]
For the felony murder rule in all U.S. jurisdictions, see felony murder rule.
Arizona abolished all common law criminal concepts and replaced them with criminal statutes.[3] The felony murder rule survives in Arizona by current statutory law. The felony murder rule holds that a killing of a person occurring in the course of, or in the immediate flight from, the commission of the following crimes is considered murder in the first degree:[4]
