VA · jury_instructions
Va. Model Jury Instr. Crim. No. 33.600
Involuntary Manslaughter—General
The defendant is charged with the crime of involuntary manslaughter. The Commonwealth
must prove beyond a reasonable doubt each of the following elements of that crime:
(1) That the defendant killed (name of person); and
(2) That the killing, although unintended, was the direct result of [negligence; the unlawful
performance of a lawful act, accompanied by carelessness; the performance of an unlawful, but not
felonious, act, accompanied by carelessness] so gross, wanton and culpable as to show a callous
disregard of human life.
[(1) That the defendant owed (name of person) a legal duty; and
(2) That the death of (name of person) was the direct result of the defendant’s failure to perform the
legal duty owed to (name of person); and
(3) That the defendant’s failure to perform the duty constituted negligence so gross, wanton and culpable
as to show a callous disregard for human life.]
If you find from the evidence that the Commonwealth has proved beyond a reasonable doubt
each of the above elements of the crime as charged, then you shall find the defendant guilty [but
you shall not fix the punishment until your verdict has been returned and further evidence has been heard
by you].
If you find that the Commonwealth has failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt any one or
more of the elements of the crime, then you shall find the defendant not guilty.
History
Virginia Model Jury Instructions – Criminal, Release 26, October 2025. The unannotated set, posted by the Supreme Court of Virginia at vacourts.gov; the book states that it is made available with the permission of the publisher, Matthew Bender & Company, Inc.
Provenance
- Source
- vacourts.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-11
- Edition
- crim-2025-10-01
- Content hash
65900cd7ad02ba4e2a3e3b13c7c5c82db3831d81ec62a8ff98e18440ad981c53
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