18 Pa.C.S. § 1102
This is the official text of 18 Pa.C.S. § 1102, part of Pennsylvania’s Pa.C.S — part of the compiled statutory law of Pennsylvania, published by the state as "Pa.C.S." Browse the sections below, each linked to its official government source.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
Sentence for murder, murder of unborn child and murder of law enforcement officer.
Official statutory text
(a) First degree.--
(1) Except as provided under section 1102.1 (relating to sentence of persons under the age of 18 for murder, murder of an unborn child and murder of a law enforcement officer), a person who has been convicted of a murder of the first degree or of murder of a law enforcement officer of the first degree shall be sentenced to death or to a term of life imprisonment in accordance with 42 Pa.C.S. § 9711 (relating to sentencing procedure for murder of the first degree).
(2) The sentence for a person who has been convicted of first degree murder of an unborn child shall be the same as the sentence for murder of the first degree, except that the death penalty shall not be imposed. This paragraph shall not affect the determination of an aggravating circumstance under 42 Pa.C.S. § 9711(d)(17) for the killing of a pregnant woman.
(b) Second degree.--Except as provided under section 1102.1, a person who has been convicted of murder of the second degree,
of second degree murder of an unborn child or of second degree murder of a law enforcement officer shall be sentenced to a term of life imprisonment.
(c) Attempt, solicitation and conspiracy.--Notwithstanding section 1103(1) (relating to sentence of imprisonment for felony), a person who has been convicted of attempt, solicitation or conspiracy to commit murder, murder of an unborn child or murder of a law enforcement officer where serious bodily injury results may be sentenced to a term of imprisonment which shall be fixed by the court at not more than 40 years. Where serious bodily injury does not result, the person may be sentenced to a term of imprisonment which shall be fixed by the court at not more than 20 years.
(d) Third degree.--Notwithstanding section 1103, a person who has been convicted of murder of the third degree or of third degree murder of an unborn child shall be sentenced to a term which shall be fixed by the court at not more than 40 years. (Mar. 26, 1974, P.L.213, No.46, eff. imd.; Mar. 9, 1995, 1st Sp.Sess., P.L.964, No.3, eff. 60 days; Mar. 15, 1995, 1st Sp.Sess., P.L.970, No.5, eff. 60 days; Oct. 2, 1997, P.L.379, No.44, eff. 180 days; Oct. 17, 2008, P.L.1628, No.131, eff. 60 days; Oct. 25, 2012, P.L.1655, No.204, eff. imd.) 2012 Amendment. Act 204 amended subsecs. (a)(1) and (b). 2008 Amendment. Act 131 amended the section heading and subsecs. (a), (b) and (c). Cross References. Section 1102 is referred to in sections 106, 2604 of this title.
(1) Except as provided under section 1102.1 (relating to sentence of persons under the age of 18 for murder, murder of an unborn child and murder of a law enforcement officer), a person who has been convicted of a murder of the first degree or of murder of a law enforcement officer of the first degree shall be sentenced to death or to a term of life imprisonment in accordance with 42 Pa.C.S. § 9711 (relating to sentencing procedure for murder of the first degree).
(2) The sentence for a person who has been convicted of first degree murder of an unborn child shall be the same as the sentence for murder of the first degree, except that the death penalty shall not be imposed. This paragraph shall not affect the determination of an aggravating circumstance under 42 Pa.C.S. § 9711(d)(17) for the killing of a pregnant woman.
(b) Second degree.--Except as provided under section 1102.1, a person who has been convicted of murder of the second degree,
of second degree murder of an unborn child or of second degree murder of a law enforcement officer shall be sentenced to a term of life imprisonment.
(c) Attempt, solicitation and conspiracy.--Notwithstanding section 1103(1) (relating to sentence of imprisonment for felony), a person who has been convicted of attempt, solicitation or conspiracy to commit murder, murder of an unborn child or murder of a law enforcement officer where serious bodily injury results may be sentenced to a term of imprisonment which shall be fixed by the court at not more than 40 years. Where serious bodily injury does not result, the person may be sentenced to a term of imprisonment which shall be fixed by the court at not more than 20 years.
(d) Third degree.--Notwithstanding section 1103, a person who has been convicted of murder of the third degree or of third degree murder of an unborn child shall be sentenced to a term which shall be fixed by the court at not more than 40 years. (Mar. 26, 1974, P.L.213, No.46, eff. imd.; Mar. 9, 1995, 1st Sp.Sess., P.L.964, No.3, eff. 60 days; Mar. 15, 1995, 1st Sp.Sess., P.L.970, No.5, eff. 60 days; Oct. 2, 1997, P.L.379, No.44, eff. 180 days; Oct. 17, 2008, P.L.1628, No.131, eff. 60 days; Oct. 25, 2012, P.L.1655, No.204, eff. imd.) 2012 Amendment. Act 204 amended subsecs. (a)(1) and (b). 2008 Amendment. Act 131 amended the section heading and subsecs. (a), (b) and (c). Cross References. Section 1102 is referred to in sections 106, 2604 of this title.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Need a lawyer in Pennsylvania?
Find a Pennsylvania lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.