Murder of Relatives or Friends

What is it?

The law says that Murder is the act whereby a person kills another.

Homicidio Familiares  

Murder is a crime and may be linked to other crimes or violent behaviors, for example:

  • when a victim of  domestic violence is killed by the offender;
  • when a victim of domestic violence kills the offender as a way of defending himself/herself;
  • when the victim is killed after being robbed in the street;
  • when, after being sexually assaulted, the offender  kills  the victim in order to hide all evidence of the crime;
  • when the victim dies because of a traffic accident in which the  driver had a blood alcohol level (resulting from having drank too much alcohol) above the limit allowed by law.


Separador

The closest people (relatives or friends, for example) of someone who was a victim of murder also suffer the consequences of that crime:

  • losing someone because of murder may be an intense and traumatic experience that affects physical and mental well-being;
  • when a relative or a friend of ours is the victim of murder, several negative reactions may arise (e.g., fear, anger, guilt, anxiety);
  • as well as having to deal with these negative feelings, the victim’s relatives or friends have to face the loss of a person who was close and accept that what happened cannot be undone. This is a complicated process called BEREAVEMENT. To learn more about bereavement, go to How does it affect the victim’s relatives and friends?