18 U.S.C. § 1113: Attempt to Commit Murder or Manslaughter

Under 18 U.S.C. § 1113, attempting to commit murder or manslaughter within federal jurisdiction is a federal crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison for attempted murder and up to 7 years for attempted manslaughter.¹ The statute punishes lethal conduct even when the victim survives, and because the offense is an attempt, the case turns on what the defendant intended and did rather than on the result.

Where Section 1113 Applies

Section 1113 is not a nationwide law. It reaches only conduct within the “special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States,” defined at 18 U.S.C. § 7.² That covers the high seas and waters under federal admiralty jurisdiction, U.S.-owned or U.S.-registered vessels (including ships on the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River along the international boundary), land held under exclusive or concurrent federal jurisdiction such as military bases, federal prisons, national parks, and federal courthouses, and U.S. aircraft flying over the high seas or over waters within federal admiralty jurisdiction.

Most attempted killings in the country happen outside those areas and belong to state prosecutors. If the conduct did not occur in one of these federal zones, § 1113 does not apply.

Why Some Attempts Are Charged Under § 113 Instead

Section 1113 opens with the phrase “Except as provided in section 113 of this title,” and that carve-out matters. Section 113 covers assaults within the same federal jurisdiction and includes assault with intent to commit murder, which carries its own 20-year maximum.³

When the attempt to kill involves a direct physical attack on the victim, prosecutors typically charge § 113. Section 1113 tends to come into play when the attempt does not fit neatly into an assault framework: poisoning, hiring someone to carry out a killing, or planting an explosive device. There is no physical confrontation in those situations, so § 113 does not reach them and § 1113 fills the gap. Both statutes carry the same 20-year ceiling, so the practical difference is the elements the government has to prove.

What the Government Must Prove

An attempted murder conviction under § 1113 requires two things: that the defendant specifically intended to kill someone, and that the defendant took a substantial step toward carrying out the killing.⁴

Specific Intent to Kill

This is where attempted murder diverges from completed murder. A person can be convicted of murder based on reckless or depraved conduct showing “malice aforethought” without any conscious desire to kill.⁵ Attempted murder is different. As the Supreme Court put it in Braxton v. United States, “although a murder may be committed without an intent to kill, an attempt to commit murder requires a specific intent to kill.”⁶ Reckless behavior that puts a life in danger, no matter how extreme, will not support an attempted murder charge.

Intent is usually proved circumstantially: prior threats, the weapon used, where on the body the defendant aimed, statements made before or after the act, and evidence of planning such as internet searches or the purchase of supplies.

Substantial Step

Thinking about killing someone is not a crime, and detailed planning by itself is not enough either. The defendant must have taken concrete action that went well beyond preparation and strongly corroborated the intent to kill.⁴ Arming yourself and driving to the victim’s home, luring the victim to an isolated location, or mixing a lethal substance into food would likely qualify. An angry journal entry would not. Courts look for actions that unequivocally show the crime will occur unless something outside the defendant’s control interrupts it. The closer the defendant got to the killing, the easier the government’s case.

Attempted Manslaughter

Federal law recognizes two kinds of manslaughter, and the distinction shapes how attempt charges work.

Voluntary manslaughter is an unlawful killing committed during a sudden quarrel or in the heat of passion.⁷ An attempted voluntary manslaughter charge fits when someone tries to kill another person under those same emotionally charged circumstances but fails. The defendant intended to kill, but the intent was reactive rather than planned. Prosecutors have to show provocation that would cause a reasonable person to lose self-control, such as a fistfight that escalates to a stabbing. If too much time passes between the provocation and the act, the heat-of-passion theory weakens because the law expects people to cool down.

Involuntary manslaughter covers killings committed during an unlawful act that is not a felony, or through reckless or negligent handling of a lawful activity.⁷ Whether a person can “attempt” involuntary manslaughter is a genuinely hard legal question, because by definition the person did not intend to kill. Most attempt charges under § 1113 for manslaughter involve the voluntary variety.

Penalties

The statute sets two penalty tiers. Attempted murder carries up to 20 years in federal prison, a fine, or both, and is classified as a Class C felony. Attempted manslaughter carries up to 7 years, a fine, or both, and is a Class D felony.¹⁸

The reference to a fine points to the general federal fines statute at 18 U.S.C. § 3571. For a felony, the maximum fine for an individual is $250,000. If the defendant gained financially from the offense or caused financial loss to the victim, the fine can instead be set at twice the gain or twice the loss, whichever is greater.⁹

These are ceilings. Actual sentences depend on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, the defendant’s criminal history, and the specific facts. The penalties apply whether or not the victim was physically injured during the attempt.

Supervised Release

A federal sentence does not end at the prison gate. Under 18 U.S.C. § 3583, a judge can add a term of supervised release after imprisonment. The cap is three years for both attempted murder (Class C) and attempted manslaughter (Class D).¹⁰ Supervised release functions somewhat like parole. The defendant lives in the community but must follow court-imposed conditions such as regular check-ins with a probation officer, travel restrictions, and weapon prohibitions. Violations can send the person back to prison.

Mandatory Restitution

If the victim suffers physical injury or financial loss, the court must order restitution under 18 U.S.C. § 3663A. Attempted murder and attempted manslaughter are crimes of violence, which triggers mandatory restitution when there is an identifiable victim.¹¹ Restitution can cover medical and rehabilitation expenses, psychiatric treatment, lost income during recovery, and the cost of participating in the investigation and prosecution. It goes to the victim rather than the government, and the court has no discretion to skip it once the statutory criteria are met.

How the Sentencing Guidelines Fit In

The Guidelines heavily shape what a judge actually imposes. For attempted murder, the relevant guideline is § 2A2.1, with a higher base offense level when the underlying conduct would have been first degree murder.¹² Under federal law, first degree murder includes premeditated killings, killings by poison or lying in wait, and killings during certain serious felonies like arson, kidnapping, or robbery.⁵ For attempted manslaughter, the Guidelines reference § 2A1.3 (voluntary) or § 2A1.4 (involuntary). Offense levels then combine with the defendant’s criminal history category to produce a recommended range in months.

Why Changing Your Mind Doesn’t Undo It

A common misconception is that stopping short of the killing should count as a defense. Federal courts have consistently rejected the idea that a defendant can “abandon” a completed attempt. Once the specific intent to kill has formed and a substantial step has been taken, the attempt is complete. Backing out afterward is a withdrawal from the murder, not from the attempt.

So a person who arms themselves, travels to the victim, and then decides at the last minute not to go through with it has still committed attempted murder if the earlier actions constituted a substantial step. The change of heart may weigh as a mitigating factor at sentencing, but it does not erase criminal liability.

If the Victim Later Dies

When a person is convicted of attempted murder under § 1113 and the victim later dies of the injuries, whether a murder prosecution can follow is complicated by the Fifth Amendment’s protection against double jeopardy. As a general rule, the government cannot prosecute someone twice for the same offense. Attempted murder and completed murder are treated as different offenses with different elements, however, and courts have permitted later murder prosecutions in some circumstances where the death follows the attempt conviction. This corner of federal criminal law is unsettled and highly fact-specific.

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1113 – Attempt to Commit Murder or Manslaughter
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 7 – Special Maritime and Territorial Jurisdiction of the United States Defined
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 113 – Assaults Within Maritime and Territorial Jurisdiction
4
United States Courts for the Ninth Circuit. 16.5 Attempted Murder – 18 USC 1113
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1111 – Murder
6
Library of Congress. Braxton v United States, 500 US 344 (1991)
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1112 – Manslaughter
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3559 – Sentencing Classification of Offenses
9
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3571 – Sentence of Fine
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3583 – Inclusion of a Term of Supervised Release After Imprisonment
11
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3663A – Mandatory Restitution to Victims of Certain Crimes
12
United States Sentencing Commission. USSG 2A2.1 – Assault With Intent to Commit Murder; Attempted Murder