Murder requires intent. Manslaughter is when you kill someone by accident.
so, unless you were cooking meth with the intent of killing your neighbors with an exploding house, it’s manslaughter ( or attempted manslaughter) instead of (attempted) murder.
I think it depends on the jurisdiction, in your first example, Gary Nawrocki pleaded guilty to third-degree murder. In the second I couldn’t find a record of conviction, and in the third Zarins plead guilty to homicide by negligent handling of dangerous weapon/explosive and maintain drug trafficking place.
Generally you need intent for it to be murder, but some jurisdictions have degrees of murder with less stringent legal requirements, It comes down to whether it would be considered acting with an extreme, reckless disregard for human life.
that usually only happens in extreme cases when there is an expectation of “reasonable foreknowledge” that what the person was doing would result in the possible deaths of others. for example: in some states, if you drive drunk and kill someone (or more) in a collision, you can be charged with murder rather than vehicular manslaughter. this usually only occurs if the crime was especially egregious, like if a drunk driver runs over a group of children.
Murder requires intent. Manslaughter is when you kill someone by accident.
so, unless you were cooking meth with the intent of killing your neighbors with an exploding house, it’s manslaughter ( or attempted manslaughter) instead of (attempted) murder.
If someone were killed, you could be charged with murder because you’re taking actions that could reasonably result in death.
IANAL
Edit: Here are some real-world examples.
Meth manufacturing explosion leads to murder charges
Temple City man charged with murder in explosions that killed 5 at illegal cannabis labs
Athens man sentenced after meth lab explosion
I think it depends on the jurisdiction, in your first example, Gary Nawrocki pleaded guilty to third-degree murder. In the second I couldn’t find a record of conviction, and in the third Zarins plead guilty to homicide by negligent handling of dangerous weapon/explosive and maintain drug trafficking place.
Generally you need intent for it to be murder, but some jurisdictions have degrees of murder with less stringent legal requirements, It comes down to whether it would be considered acting with an extreme, reckless disregard for human life.
that usually only happens in extreme cases when there is an expectation of “reasonable foreknowledge” that what the person was doing would result in the possible deaths of others. for example: in some states, if you drive drunk and kill someone (or more) in a collision, you can be charged with murder rather than vehicular manslaughter. this usually only occurs if the crime was especially egregious, like if a drunk driver runs over a group of children.
What constitutes a murder vs manslaughter charge varies quite a bit by state, as do sentencing guidelines.