True Jude (oh and thanks for the info on the year and a day rule) but surely then everyone who is accused of murder would be accused of attempted murder too? I mean, you can't murder someone unless you attempt to, so should a murderer be tried for both?

The question remains, I think, should attempted murder be punished less harshly than actual murder? I mean if the intent is the same in both cases, shouldn't the punishment be? And what about the victim? It might be less traumatic in some cases to die than to survive a murder attempt, and certainly more frightening for the victim to know that the person who tried to kill them will be free again sooner. What if they decide they want to finish the job off? I can see a lot of sense in murder and attempted murder charges carrying the same penalty.

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