aforethought

In Criminal Law, intentional, deliberate, planned, or premeditated.

Murder in the first degree, for example, requires malice aforethought; that is, the murder must have been planned for a period of time, regardless how short, before it was committed.

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aforethought adjective beforehand, calculated, contrived in advance, deliberate, designed, intended, planned, planned beforehand, prearranged, preconceived, pr econsider ed, pr edeliberated, predetermined, pr eeeditated, prepared, prepense, previously in mind, purposed, purposive, reflective, studied, with forethought
Associated concepts: malice aforethought

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See also: express, premeditated, premeditation

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AFORETHOUGHT, crim. law. Premeditated, prepense; the length of time during which the accused has entertained the thought of committing the offence is not very material, provided he has in fact entertained such thought; he is thereby rendered criminal in a greater degree than if he had committed the offence without. premeditation. Vide Malice; aforethought; Premeditation 2 Chit. Cr. 785; 4 Bl. Com. 199; Fost. 132, 291, 292; Cro. Car. 131; Palm. 545; W. Jones, 198; 4 Dall. R. 146; 1 P. A. Bro. App. xviii.; Addis. R. 148; 1 Ashm. R. 289.