Title 2. Homicide — Subtitle 2. Murder and Manslaughter
Statutes in effect as of October 1, 2026.
Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law § 2-201 (2026)
Title 2. Homicide
Subtitle 2. Murder and Manslaughter
§ 2–201LinkCopy Citation
(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;
(ix)
robbery under § 3–402 or § 3–403 of this article;
(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.
(2)
Unless a sentence of imprisonment for life without the possibility of parole is imposed in compliance with § 2–203 of this subtitle and § 2–304 of this title, the sentence shall be 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.
Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law § 2-203 (2026)
Title 2. Homicide
Subtitle 2. Murder and Manslaughter
§ 2–203LinkCopy Citation
A defendant found guilty of murder in the first degree may be sentenced to imprisonment for life without the possibility of parole only if:
(1)
at least 30 days before trial, the State gave written notice to the defendant of the State’s intention to seek a sentence of imprisonment for life without the possibility of parole; and
(2)
the sentence of imprisonment for life without the possibility of parole is imposed in accordance with § 2-304 of this title.
Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law § 2-204 (2026)
Title 2. Homicide
Subtitle 2. Murder and Manslaughter
§ 2–204LinkCopy Citation
(a)
A murder that is not in the first degree under § 2–201 of this subtitle is in the second degree.
(b)
A person who commits a murder in the second degree is guilty of a felony and on conviction is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 40 years.
Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law § 2-205 (2026)
Title 2. Homicide
Subtitle 2. Murder and Manslaughter
§ 2–205LinkCopy Citation
A person who attempts to commit murder in the first degree is guilty of a felony and on conviction is subject to imprisonment not exceeding life.
Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law § 2-206 (2026)
Title 2. Homicide
Subtitle 2. Murder and Manslaughter
§ 2–206LinkCopy Citation
A person who attempts to commit murder in the second degree is guilty of a felony and on conviction is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 30 years.
Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law § 2-207 (2026)
Title 2. Homicide
Subtitle 2. Murder and Manslaughter
§ 2–207LinkCopy Citation
(a)
A person who commits manslaughter is guilty of a felony and on conviction is subject to:
(1)
imprisonment not exceeding 10 years; or
(2)
imprisonment in a local correctional facility not exceeding 2 years or a fine not exceeding $500 or both.
(b)
The discovery of one’s spouse engaged in sexual intercourse with another does not constitute legally adequate provocation for the purpose of mitigating a killing from the crime of murder to voluntary manslaughter even though the killing was provoked by that discovery.
(c)
The discovery or perception of, or belief about, another person’s race, color, national origin, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, or disability, whether or not accurate, does not constitute legally adequate provocation to mitigate a killing from the crime of murder to manslaughter.
Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law § 2-208 (2026)
Title 2. Homicide
Subtitle 2. Murder and Manslaughter
§ 2–208LinkCopy Citation
(a)
An indictment for murder or manslaughter is sufficient if it substantially states:
“(name of defendant) on (date) in (county) feloniously (willfully and with deliberately premeditated malice) killed (and murdered) (name of victim) against the peace, government, and dignity of the State.”.
(b)
An indictment for murder or manslaughter, or for being an accessory to murder or manslaughter, need not set forth the manner or means of death.
Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law § 2-209 (2026)
Title 2. Homicide
Subtitle 2. Murder and Manslaughter
§ 2–209LinkCopy Citation
(a)
In this section, “vehicle” includes a motor vehicle, streetcar, locomotive, engine, and train.
(b)
A person may not cause the death of another as a result of the person’s driving, operating, or controlling a vehicle or vessel in a grossly negligent manner.
(c)
A violation of this section is manslaughter by vehicle or vessel.
(d)
(1)
Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, a person who violates this section is guilty of a felony and on conviction is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 10 years or a fine not exceeding $5,000 or both.
(2)
(i)
A person who violates this section, having previously been convicted under this section, § 2–210, § 2–503, § 2–504, § 2–505, § 2–506, or § 3–211 of this article, or § 21–902 of the Transportation Article, is guilty of a felony and on conviction is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 15 years or a fine not exceeding $10,000 or both.
(ii)
For the purposes of application of subsequent offender penalties under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, a conviction for a crime committed in another state or federal jurisdiction that, if committed in this State would constitute a violation of this section, § 2–210, § 2–503, § 2–504, § 2–505, § 2–506, or § 3–211 of this article, or § 21–902 of the Transportation Article, shall be considered a violation of this section.
(e)
(1)
An indictment or other charging document for manslaughter by vehicle or vessel is sufficient if it substantially states:
“(name of defendant) on (date) in (county) killed (name of victim) in a grossly negligent manner against the peace, government, and dignity of the State.”.
(2)
An indictment or other charging document for manslaughter by vehicle or vessel need not set forth the manner or means of death.
Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law § 2-210 (2026)
Title 2. Homicide
Subtitle 2. Murder and Manslaughter
§ 2–210LinkCopy Citation
(a)
In this section, “vehicle” includes a motor vehicle, streetcar, locomotive, engine, and train.
(b)
A person may not cause the death of another as the result of the person’s driving, operating, or controlling a vehicle or vessel in a criminally negligent manner.
(c)
For purposes of this section, a person acts in a criminally negligent manner with respect to a result or a circumstance when:
(1)
the person should be aware, but fails to perceive, that the person’s conduct creates a substantial and unjustifiable risk that such a result will occur; and
(2)
the failure to perceive constitutes a gross deviation from the standard of care that would be exercised by a reasonable person.
(d)
It is not a violation of this section for a person to cause the death of another as the result of the person’s driving, operating, or controlling a vehicle or vessel in a negligent manner.
(e)
A violation of this section is criminally negligent manslaughter by vehicle or vessel.
(f)
(1)
Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, a person who violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 3 years or a fine not exceeding $5,000 or both.
(2)
(i)
A person who violates this section, having previously been convicted under this section, § 2–209, § 2–503, § 2–504, § 2–505, § 2–506, or § 3–211 of this article, or § 21–902 of the Transportation Article, is guilty of a felony and on conviction is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 5 years or a fine not exceeding $10,000 or both.
(ii)
For the purposes of application of subsequent offender penalties under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, a conviction for a crime committed in another state or federal jurisdiction that, if committed in this State would constitute a violation of this section, § 2–209, § 2–503, § 2–504, § 2–505, § 2–506, or § 3–211 of this article, or § 21–902 of the Transportation Article, shall be considered a violation of this section.