187

187 is a slang term for the crime of murder. It refers to Section 187 of the California Penal Code, which defines the crime of murder. The number is commonly pronounced by reading the digits separately as "one-eight-seven", or "one-eighty-seven", rather than "one hundred eighty-seven". The number "187" has been used by gangs throughout the United States as a synonym for murder; this usage has been reported as far away as Florida^[1], Wisconsin^[2] and even the United Kingdom^[3].

California Penal Code Section 187

California Penal Code section 187, subdivision (a) defines murder as "the unlawful killing of a human being, or a fetus, with malice aforethought." Subdivision (b) states that subdivision (a) does not apply to any person who commits an act that results in the death of a fetus if any of the following apply: (1) The act complied with certain Health and Safety Codes or (2) The act was committed by a holder of a physician's and surgeon's certificate, in a case where, to a medical certainty, the result of childbirth would be death of the mother of the fetus or where her death from childbirth, although not medically certain, would be substantially certain or more likely than not, or (3) The act was solicited, aided, abetted, or consented to by the mother of the fetus.^[4]

In California, suspects are usually charged by reference to one or more Penal Code (PC) sections. Thus, the charging documents for a suspect charged with murder would be inscribed with "PC 187(a)" or just "PC 187". If a suspect is charged with attempted murder, then the relevant code would be "PC 664/187" because attempt is defined in Penal Code section 664.^[5]

See also

• Law enforcement jargon

References

External links

Look up 187 in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.