The soul of a murder victim:[1]
The soul of a murder victims does not rest in heaven until their murderer is apprehended and held accountable. The soul of the victim demands justice and that his murderer be put to death, and does not rest his case until this is done. This is the secret meaning of the verse “One who spills blood of man, his blood will spill” as through the prosecution that the soul of the victim voices against the murderer, he brings about the death of the murderer, and if not in this world then in the next world. This can be seen with the story brought in the Midrash[2] that after a certain son was murdered by his brother, his mother saved the blood in a jar, and that blood boiled until the sibling murderer was killed. It is for this reason that we do not perform Taharah to a murder victim, as burying the victim in the clothing that he wore at the time of his murder helps motivate him to seek vengeance against the murderer.
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[1] Mavor Yabok Sefas Emes 10
[2] Midrash Raba Vaeschanon
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