term:

Premeditation

premeditation n

: an act or instance of premeditating
;specif
: consideration or planning of an act beforehand [designed so that it requires to tamper with it] [murder in the first degree is the killing of a human being committed…intentionally and with "Kansas Statutes Annotated"] see also cold blood, murder compare intent NOTE: The terms premeditation malice aforethought deliberate, and willful are often used in statutes either along with or instead of intent to describe the necessary mental state for a crime. In some jurisdictions the premeditation has to occur only moments before the act, while in others it must precede the act by an appreciable amount of time.

Source: Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law ©1996. Merriam-Webster, Incorporated. Published under license with Merriam-Webster, Incorporated.