Homicide in Spain
Homicide in Spain: a simple overview
- What it is: Killing another person, violating the right to life, defined mainly in Article 138 of the Spanish Criminal Code (1995).
- Article 138: If someone kills another person, they can be punished with 10 to 15 years in prison. The key idea is bad faith or intent, which can show up in many forms and can involve either the killer (the one who acts) or the person who is killed. The victim can be anyone.
- Assassination (asesinato): Homicide with aggravating circumstances, covered by Articles 139 and 140.
- Homicide by serious negligence (grave recklessness): Covered by Article 142. This includes deaths caused by serious negligence with weapons, vehicles, or due to professional negligence.
Penalties under Article 142:
- 1) Death caused by serious negligence: 1 to 4 years in prison.
- 2) If death is caused by a motor vehicle, moped, or firearm: penalties also include a temporary loss of the right to drive or own/carry weapons for 1 to 6 years, depending on the case.
- 3) For professional negligence: a ban from practicing the profession for 3 to 6 years.
- Involuntary homicide: Not a separate, standalone category in Spanish law. In many cases, the applicable punishment will lie somewhere between homicide and the related concept, and the law focuses on violating the right to life. There is no distinct rule for parricide (killing a family member) or uxoricide (killing a spouse); kinship can be an aggravating factor under Article 23.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 00:14 (CET).