ABSTRACT
This chapter will describe and differentiate between different legal definitions of homicide in Scotland as well as how these crimes differ from similar crimes in England and Wales. This chapter will also outline different definitions of homicide used in research, pointing to how this may differ internationally, outlining the challenges this may bring in international comparisons. This chapter will also describe the homicide dataset that will be used in the studies throughout this book. This includes an account of the founding of the database and a description of the main features of homicide victims, offenders and incidents that occurred in Scotland between 2000 and 2015.
