Murder by lying in wait Law and Legal Definition
A murder immediately preceded by lying in wait is murder of the first degree. The term 'lying in wait' is defined as “a waiting and watching for an opportune time to act, together with a concealment by ambush or some other secret design to take the other person by surprise even though the victim is aware of the murderer's presence. The lying in wait need not continue for any particular time provided its duration is such to show a state of mind equivalent to premeditation or deliberation. In the crime of murder by lying in wait, a necessary element is the existence in the mind of a defendant of a concealed purpose or plan to surprise the victim." Nguyen v. Kane, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 105952 (E.D. Cal. Nov. 12, 2009)
