Parricide

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Parricide refers to the deliberate killing of one's own father and mother, spouse (husband or wife), children, and/or close relative. However, the term is sometimes used more generally to refer to the intentional killing of a near relative.^[1] It is an umbrella term that can be used to refer to acts of matricide and patricide.

Matricide refers to the deliberate killing of one's own mother.^[2] Patricide refers to the deliberate killing of one's own father.^[3] The term parricide is also used to refer to many familicides (i.e. family annihilations wherein at least one parent is murdered along with other family members).

Societies consider parricide a serious crime and parricide offenders are subject to criminal prosecution under the homicide laws which are established in places (i.e. countries, states, etc.) in which parricides occur. According to the law, in most countries, an adult who is convicted of parricide faces a long-term prison sentence, a life sentence, or even capital punishment. Youthful parricide offenders who are younger than the age of majority (e.g. 18 year olds in the United States) may be prosecuted under less stringent laws which are designed to take their special needs and development into account but these laws are usually waived and as a result, most youthful parricide offenders are transferred into the Adult Judicial System.^[4]

Parricide offenders are typically divided into two categories, 1) youthful parricide offenders (i.e. ages 8–24) and 2) adult parricide offenders (i.e. ages 25 and older) because the motivations and situations surrounding parricide events change as a child matures.^[5]