Lethal Weapon Law and Legal Definition
A lethal weapon means a deadly weapon. Any firearm, device, instrument, material, or any other substance that is capable of producing great bodily harm or death from the manner it is used or intended to be used, may be referred to as a lethal weapon. A gun, sword, knife, pistol, or the like, is a lethal weapon, as a matter of law, when used within striking distance from the person assaulted.
The use of lethal weapon supports finding of second-degree murder, however, its use is not of itself sufficient to support first-degree murder conviction in absence of evidentiary circumstances surrounding killing from which logical inference may be drawn as to premeditation and deliberation. [People v Hoffmeister (1975) 394 Mich 155, 229 NW2d 305]. However, the use of lethal weapon supports inference of intent to kill. [People v Ray (1974) 56 Mich App 610, 224 NW2d 735].
