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Current as of December 31, 2021 | Updated by FindLaw Staff
(a) A murder is in the first degree if it is:
(1) a deliberate, premeditated, and willful killing;
(2) committed by lying in wait;
(3) committed by poison; or
(4) committed in the perpetration of or an attempt to perpetrate:
(i) arson in the first degree;
(ii) burning a barn, stable, tobacco house, warehouse, or other outbuilding that:
1. is not parcel to a dwelling; and
2. contains cattle, goods, wares, merchandise, horses, grain, hay, or tobacco;
(iii) burglary in the first, second, or third degree;
(iv) carjacking or armed carjacking;
(v) escape in the first degree from a State correctional facility or a local correctional facility;
(vi) kidnapping under § 3-502 or § 3-503(a)(2) of this article;
(vii) mayhem;
(viii) rape;
(x) sexual offense in the first or second degree;
(xi) sodomy as that crime existed before October 1, 2020; or
(xii) a violation of § 4-503 of this article concerning destructive devices.
(b)(1) A person who commits a murder in the first degree is guilty of a felony and on conviction shall be sentenced to:
(i) imprisonment for life without the possibility of parole; or
(ii) imprisonment for life.
(c) A person who solicits another or conspires with another to commit murder in the first degree is guilty of murder in the first degree if the death of another occurs as a result of the solicitation or conspiracy.
Cite this article: FindLaw.com - Maryland Code, Criminal Law § 2-201 - last updated December 31, 2021 | https://codes.findlaw.com/md/criminal-law/md-code-crim-law-sect-2-201.html
FindLaw Codes may not reflect the most recent version of the law in your jurisdiction. Please verify the status of the code you are researching with the state legislature or via Westlaw before relying on it for your legal needs.
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