Murder Lawyer Toronto | Homicide Defence | Sewrattan Criminal Lawyers

Composed by Chris Sewrattan, Certified Specialist in Criminal Law. Updated July 2026.

This is legal information, not legal advice. It does not create a lawyer-client relationship. For advice about your situation, contact us for a consultation.

Murder is the most serious charge in Canadian law. It carries a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment, bail can be granted only by a Superior Court judge, and the trial is ordinarily before a judge and jury. These cases are long, document-heavy, and defended on multiple fronts at once: identity, intent, causation, and the justifications and partial defences the Criminal Code preserves. Nothing about a murder charge is routine, and the earliest decisions, at the police station and at the bail stage, shape everything that follows.

What is murder under Canadian law?

Culpable homicide is murder under section 229 of the Criminal Code where the person who caused the death meant to cause it, or meant to cause bodily harm they knew was likely to cause death and was reckless whether death ensued. That subjective intent is what separates murder from manslaughter.

Section 231 divides murder into degrees, which affect parole rather than the life sentence itself:

First degree murder includes murder that is planned and deliberate, the murder of a police officer or other listed justice system participant, contract killings, and murder committed while committing certain offences including sexual assault, kidnapping and forcible confinement, criminal harassment, and hijacking. From July 18, 2026, the Protecting Victims Act adds femicide: murders committed in situations involving coercive control, hate, sexual violence, or exploitation are first degree, and are defined as femicide where the victim is female.
Second degree murder is all murder that is not first degree.

The Crown must prove identity, causation (that the accused's act was a significant contributing cause of death), and the intent under section 229, each beyond a reasonable doubt.

Penalties for murder in Ontario

The sentence for murder is life imprisonment, and it is mandatory. What varies is parole ineligibility. For first degree murder, the offender may not apply for parole for 25 years. For second degree murder, the judge sets ineligibility between 10 and 25 years after considering the circumstances and any jury recommendation. The Supreme Court of Canada held in R v Bissonnette that parole ineligibility periods cannot be stacked consecutively for multiple murders, so 25 years is the maximum before a parole application is possible. Parole eligibility is not release: a person serving a life sentence remains under sentence and supervision for life, and many are detained well past their eligibility date.

Murder is listed in section 469 of the Criminal Code, which means bail can be decided only in the Superior Court of Justice, under section 522, and the onus is on the accused to show why release is justified. Release on murder charges is uncommon but not impossible with a strong plan; our bail hearings page explains how these applications are built.

Possible defences to a murder charge

Depending on the evidence, defences may include:

Identity: the core issue in many Toronto homicide trials, contested through eyewitness frailty, video interpretation, cell tower and phone data, DNA, and disclosure of the full investigation.
Intent: reducing murder to manslaughter where the Crown cannot prove the state of mind section 229 requires, including through evidence of intoxication bearing on intent.
Causation: whether the accused's act was a significant contributing cause of death, particularly with intervening events or multiple actors.
Self-defence: section 34 permits reasonable defensive force, including lethal force where the threat and circumstances make the response reasonable.
Provocation: a partial defence under section 232 that reduces murder to manslaughter where the deceased's conduct, itself amounting to a serious indictable offence, caused the accused to lose self-control and act suddenly.
Not criminally responsible: where a mental disorder deprived the accused of the capacity to appreciate the nature of the act or know it was wrong.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between first and second degree murder?

Both carry mandatory life sentences. First degree, which includes planned and deliberate murder and murders committed during certain offences, carries 25 years of parole ineligibility; for second degree the judge sets ineligibility between 10 and 25 years.

What does a life sentence actually mean?

The sentence lasts for life. Parole eligibility only allows an application; the Parole Board decides whether release ever happens, and anyone released remains supervised for life and can be returned to custody.

Is bail possible on a murder charge?

Yes, but only from a Superior Court judge, and the onus is on the accused. Release requires a strong plan of supervision and typically substantial sureties; these applications are prepared like a trial.

What reduces murder to manslaughter?

A reasonable doubt about the intent to kill or to cause life-threatening harm, or the partial defence of provocation. Intoxication can be relevant to whether the Crown has proven intent.

How long does a murder case take?

Typically years from arrest to verdict, through disclosure, pre-trial applications, and a jury trial. The Jordan ceilings apply, and delay is litigated where the timeline becomes unreasonable.

Will the trial be in front of a jury?

Murder is tried in the Superior Court of Justice, ordinarily by judge and jury. Trial by judge alone is possible with the consent of the Crown.

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