Also known as: first-degree felony · first degree felony · felony in the first degree · 1st degree felony · felony 1 · F1
Written by attorneys — see sources below.
A statutory classification denoting the most serious category of felony offenses. This grade applies to crimes such as murder, certain forms of rape and kidnapping, and robbery involving attempts to kill or inflict serious bodily injury. Conviction carries the highest authorized penalties, including the possibility of life imprisonment or death in capital cases.
Freya Freeman abducts a child from a playground and holds the victim in an isolated cabin for ransom. She keeps the child bound for three days without releasing her. Because the victim was not voluntarily released alive and in a safe place before trial, the kidnapping qualifies as a felony of the first degree.
Frank Fisher forces sexual intercourse on a stranger by threatening imminent death and then inflicts serious bodily injury during the attack. The presence of both compulsion by threat of death and the infliction of serious injury elevates the rape to a felony of the first degree.
Fiona Foster is convicted of purposeful murder after shooting a rival. The court must decide whether to impose the death penalty or sentence her for a felony of the first degree. A separate proceeding weighs aggravating and mitigating factors to determine the appropriate punishment within that classification.
In September 1994, a Wells Fargo armored van pulled up to the drive-up window of a bank in Glendale, Arizona. Inside the van were a driver, a guard, and a messenger carrying a bag with more than $270,000 in cash. As the van waited for the bank to open, a man armed with a rifle approached the driver's side of the van while another man armed with a handgun approached the passenger side. The man with the rifle shot and killed the driver. The man with the handgun shot at the guard but missed. The guard returned fire, shooting and wounding the man with the handgun. The wounded man with the handgun was later identified as Timothy Ring. Ring was indicted for first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit armed robbery, armed robbery, and other crimes. At trial, the prosecutor presented evidence that Ring and two others had planned to rob the armored van. The jury deadlocked on premeditated murder. It convicted Ring of felony murder occurring in the course of armed robbery. At the sentencing stage of the trial, the judge found two aggravating factors. The judge found that the murder was committed in expectation of pecuniary gain and in an especially heinous, cruel or depraved manner. The judge found one mitigating factor consisting of Ring's minimal criminal record. Finding that the aggravating factors outweighed the mitigating factor, the judge sentenced Ring to death. On appeal, Ring argued that Arizona's capital sentencing scheme violates the Sixth Amendment as interpreted in Apprendi v. New Jersey. The Arizona Supreme Court rejected that claim, relying on Walton v. Arizona, and affirmed Ring's conviction and sentence. The Supreme Court granted certiorari to resolve whether Walton can be reconciled with Apprendi.
View caseFrancisco Frost commits a theft and then attempts to stab the victim to prevent interference. The attempt to inflict serious bodily injury during the theft upgrades the robbery to a felony of the first degree rather than the default second-degree grading.
Paul D. Anderson is a longtime methamphetamine addict. As of the time of the crimes at issue here, he had been out of work for a year, was separated from his wife, had neither a job nor a car, and was living on the streets or spending nights in the homes of other methamphetamine users. Defendant spent the morning and afternoon of November 7, 2003, at the home of Ginger Lyle, a drug dealer, where he smoked methamphetamine and socialized with Lyle and several other users. After leaving Lyle's home, he went to an apartment complex a few blocks away, later stating he went with the intention of finding a car to steal so he could visit his wife and children. On November 7, 19-year-old Pamela Thompson came home from work around 9:00 p.m. She parked her car in the apartment complex's carport and went to her apartment to change her clothing before going out, leaving her purse in the car. In the meantime, defendant entered the complex looking for a car he could enter with his key. After failing to break into several cars, defendant successfully opened the door to Pamela's car, started it, and attempted to drive out of the complex. After discovering the gate to the complex did not open automatically, defendant backed the car into a parking space to wait for someone else to open the gate. By this time, Pamela had discovered her car was gone. She telephoned her stepfather, Joe Deitz, asking if he had taken it. When he said he had not, she told him the car had been stolen. Pamela also called her mother, Barbara Thompson, telling her the car had been stolen and she was looking for it. After they spoke for a few minutes, Barbara heard Pamela say, loudly, "Oh, my God. Here comes my car real fast." The phone went silent. Joe ran to the gate where he found Pamela lying in a puddle of blood on the street. Pamela never regained consciousness and died a few days later. She had suffered multiple blunt-force traumas resulting in multiple skull and rib fractures, injuries consistent with having been crushed by a car traveling the length of her body. Defendant quickly abandoned the car but took from it a credit card and driver's license belonging to Pamela. He was arrested several days later after having used the credit card several times. Defendant was convicted following a jury trial of first degree felony murder with the special circumstance of killing during the course of a robbery, robbery, and receipt of stolen property. The Court of Appeal reversed on the ground that the trial court erred by failing to provide a sua sponte instruction on accident.
View caseA felony of the first degree is the highest statutory grade and applies to the most serious offenses such as murder. It carries the longest possible sentences, including life imprisonment or death, while second- and third-degree felonies receive shorter maximum terms.
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Kidnapping is a felony of the first degree unless the actor voluntarily releases the victim alive and in a safe place prior to trial, in which case it becomes a felony of the second degree.
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Rape is a felony of the second degree unless the actor inflicts serious bodily injury or the victim was not a voluntary social companion and had not previously permitted sexual liberties, in which cases the offense is a felony of the first degree.
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Murder is a felony of the first degree, but a separate proceeding determines whether the defendant receives a sentence for that felony or the death penalty based on aggravating and mitigating circumstances.
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A prosecution for a felony of the first degree must be commenced within six years after it is committed.
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…several days later after having used the credit card several times. Defendant was convicted, following a jury trial, of first degree felony murder with the special circumstance of killing during the course of a robbery (Pen. Code, §§ 187, 190.2, subd. (a)(17)(A)), robbery ( id. , § 211), and receipt of stolen property ( id. , §…