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human
ELI5: What do the numbers after a crime mean?

So I've been watching Law and Order: SVU and something I have always wondered is what the numbers after the crimes mean (Rape 3, Murder 1 etc.). I gather that the lower the number the more severe the crime. But is there an overall method to the numbers (like it goes from 2 to 1 if malus aforethought intends to be proven in the court)?
gpt
The number is the "degree" of the crime. Murder, for example, includes:

* **First-degree murder** is any intentional murder that is willful and premeditated with malice aforethought. Felony murder is typically first-degree.
* **Second-degree murder** is an intentional murder with malice aforethought, but is not premeditated or planned in advance.
* **Voluntary manslaughter** (also referred to as **third-degree murder**), sometimes called a crime of passion murder, is any intentional killing that involved no prior intent to kill, and which was committed under such circumstances that would "cause a reasonable person to become emotionally or mentally disturbed". Both this and second-degree murder are committed on the spot, but the two differ in the magnitude of the circumstances surrounding the crime. For example, a bar fight that results in death would ordinarily constitute second-degree murder. If that same bar fight stemmed from a discovery of infidelity, however, it may be mitigated to voluntary manslaughter.
* **Involuntary manslaughter** stems from a lack of intention to cause death but involving an intentional, or negligent, act leading to death. A drunk driving-related death is typically involuntary manslaughter. Note that the "unintentional" element here refers to the lack of intent to bring about the death. All three crimes above feature an intent to kill, whereas involuntary manslaughter is "unintentional", because the killer did not intend for a death to result from their intentional actions. If there is a presence of intention it relates only to the intent to cause a violent act which brings about the death, but not an intention to bring about the death itself.

So, to answer your question, yes - the lower the number, the more severe the crime, thus the more severe the punishment.