ARRESTED
DOES NOT MEAN GUILTY

Last updated on January 23, 2024

The Defense You Need Against Manslaughter Charges

A manslaughter charge can be life-altering for the accused person and his or her family members. If convicted, you could end up in prison for the rest of your life. At Ryan Pacyga Criminal Defense, our record speaks for itself. We have obtained not-guilty verdicts and dismissals in many serious felony cases. We have the knowledge and resources required to mount an effective defense for you, no matter how serious the charges.

What Does It Mean To Be Charged With Manslaughter?

In general, manslaughter means that someone died at the hands of another person without the intention to cause the death. In Minnesota, manslaughter can be charged with in the first or second degree.

  • Manslaughter in the First Degree means that a person:(1) intentionally causes the death of another person in the heat of passion provoked by such words or acts of another as would provoke a person of ordinary self-control under like circumstances, provided that the crying of a child does not constitute provocation;(2) violates section 609.224 and causes the death of another or causes the death of another in committing or attempting to commit a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor offense with such force and violence that death of or great bodily harm to any person was reasonably foreseeable, and murder in the first or second degree was not committed thereby;

    (3) intentionally causes the death of another person because the actor is coerced by threats made by someone other than the actor’s coconspirator and which cause the actor reasonably to believe that the act performed by the actor is the only means of preventing imminent death to the actor or another;

    (4) proximately causes the death of another, without intent to cause death by, directly or indirectly, unlawfully selling, giving away, bartering, delivering, exchanging, distributing, or administering a controlled substance classified in Schedule III, IV, or V; or

    (5) causes the death of another in committing or attempting to commit malicious punishment of a child, and murder in the first, second, or third degree is not committed thereby.

  • Manslaughter in the Second Degree means that a person:(1) by the person’s culpable negligence whereby the person creates an unreasonable risk, and consciously takes chances of causing death or great bodily harm to another; or(2) by shooting another with a firearm or other dangerous weapon as a result of negligently believing the other to be a deer or other animal; or

    (3) by setting a spring gun, pitfall, deadfall, snare, or other like dangerous weapon or device; or

    (4) by negligently or intentionally permitting any animal, known by the person to have vicious propensities or to have caused great or substantial bodily harm in the past, to run uncontrolled off the owner’s premises, or negligently failing to keep it properly confined; or

    (5) by committing or attempting to commit a violation of neglect or endangerment of a child statutes, and murder in the first, second, or third degree is not committed thereby.

We Have What It Takes To Win

At Ryan Pacyga Criminal Defense, we have the knowledge and resources required to take on these challenging cases and win. Our St. Paul, criminal defense attorneys’ will develop and execute a plan for your defense that can include launching our own investigation. Our private investigator will track down witnesses, take statements and gather evidence. We will make sure the jury has a full understanding of the facts of case – not just the prosecution’s version.

Discuss Your Case And Learn Your Options

To discuss your case, please contact us by website email or call 612-474-5420. We are effective trial lawyers who defend people accused of violent crimes in state and federal courts in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, throughout Minnesota and across the nation.