Double murder

For the 1977 Italian film, see Double Murder (film).

Double murder is a term used to describe the act of unlawfully killing two people. This is commonly punished by back-to-back life sentences. It is possible but rare for a double-murder charge to be enforced in cases of homicide in which a pregnant woman is murdered, thereby killing her unborn fetus, such as in the Laci Peterson case.^[1] In most jurisdictions, such a case will not happen, because in general, a fetus is not legally considered a person, and thus killing a fetus is not legally equivalent to homicide. Even though it is not necessarily correct, the term is often attached to incidents involving higher numbers of people such as if three or four people were to be murdered.^[who?]

Notable cases

The following is a list of notable double murder cases.

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

• Lizzie Borden, tried and acquitted for the murder of her father and stepmother
• Laci Peterson (pregnant), murdered by her husband Scott Peterson
• Rachel Entwistle and Lillian Entwistle, murdered by their husband/father, Neil Entwistle
• Nancy Benoit and Daniel Benoit, allegedly murdered by Chris Benoit
• Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman, allegedly murdered by O.J. Simpson
• Eric Bellucci, alumnus of Stuyvesant High School and Williams College, is accused of the murder of his father and mother in their Staten Island home in October 2010 ^[2]

^{[3] [4]}

References

1. ^ Jennings, Rob (2003-04-20). "Laci Peterson case tied to Roe debate". Daily Record. http://www.dailyrecord.com/news/03/04/20/news3-laci.htm. Retrieved 2007-02-10. ^{[dead link]}
2. ^ http://www.silive.com/southshore/index.ssf/2011/01/eric_bellucci_unfit_to_stand_t.html
3. ^ Gendar, Alison; Jackson, Joe; Moore, Tina (2010-10-16). "S.I. suspect Eric Bellucci told friend he was with Mossad before slayings of his parents". Daily News (New York). http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2010/10/16/2010-10-16_strange_signs_before_slays_si_suspect_said_he_was_with_mossad.html. 
4. ^ Martinez, Edecio (2010-10-15). "Israeli Police Arrest Fugitive Eric Bellucci, After Brutal Slaying of His Parents in NY". CBS News. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20019707-504083.html?tag=contentMain;contentBody. 

See also

• Murder-suicide