Homicide is the killing of a human being by another person. This is a serious offense that can carry significant punishments, including death by hanging or stoning. It can also rob people of their lives, and it can harm their families and friends. This page provides data and research on how common homicides are, how they differ across countries, and whether the rate is declining over time.

The definition of homicide can vary considerably among legal systems. For instance, some homicides are considered justifiable, such as the killing of a criminal to prevent his or her commission of a crime or to aid the enforcement of the law. Other homicides are considered excusable, such as the killing of oneself or another in self-defense. Some homicides are also considered unavoidable, such as deaths caused by armed conflict or natural disasters.

A homicide can be committed with a variety of weapons and by many different methods. For example, beatings or suffocation are common methods of murdering young children (5 years), and they victimize boys and girls about equally. A large percentage of these victims are killed by their family members. Honor killings are a culturally constructed form of homicide where the victim is murdered by male family members or community members who feel that they have brought shame to the family.

Poisoning homicides are sometimes difficult to detect, particularly when the victims are hospitalized patients and the symptoms do not appear until days or weeks after the poisoning. This category of homicide is also difficult to prosecute because health-care staff are often not suspected.