Both murder and manslaughter are crimes that end with the same result, that result being death. However similar the end result may be, it is the nature of the crime itself that determines what happens to the criminal when being prosecuted. While premeditation makes murder very different from manslaughter, it is really only the degree of recklessness and neglect for human life and well-being that determines the difference between manslaughter and lesser murder charges. While premeditation makes murder very different from manslaughter, it is really only the degree of recklessness and neglect for human life and well-being that determines the difference between manslaughter and lesser murder charges. The previous explanations and definitions are quite basic and derived from older common laws, statutes, and landmark cases that have provided rich legal histories to create dividing lines between certain crimes, especially murder and manslaughter, where the line given is very thin. It is interesting to view the definitions of terms in the legal sense, especially when some of them are just what the act itself is defined as, and others are what must be observed in the defendant’s actions in order to prove him guilty of such a crime and innocent of another. The thought processes and actions that lead to these consequences are legally defined for all crimes, not just murder and manslaughter.