Attempted Homicide with Overkill Features in a Suspected Drug-Related Context: A Romanian Case Study

Background. This article analyzes a case of attempted murder committed in Bucharest in 2025 by a person under the influence of drugs, as well as the possible link between this type of crime and overkill—the excessive use of force by the aggressor. After reviewing the state of scientific research on drug-related homicides in Romania and the specialized literature on overkill, the study presents a description of the crime and the extensive injuries present in this case. The legal classification, the presence of overkill, and the applicability of the main theory explaining this phenomenon—the relationship between the perpetrator and the victim—are analyzed. Conclusion. Overkill may be a characteristic of drug-related homicide, but future studies in both the field of DRH and the field of overkill in Romania are necessary, and an interdisciplinary approach—sociology, forensic medicine, criminalistics, and forensic psychology—is desirable.