Inchoate Crimes (Ch. 8) Flashcards
inchoate
“partly in existence or imperfectly formed;” an inchoate crime is one that is a step toward the completion of a target crime.
solicitation
the offense of asking someone else to commit or join in a crime.
actus reus of solicitation
requesting another person to commit or join in a specified crime.
mens rea of solicitation
the intent that the crime be committed.
If the solicitee agrees to commit the crime, what happens?
A conspiracy is formed, and the solicitation merges into the conspiracy.
Can a solicitation constitute an attempt?
Generally not, unless further steps are taken toward the commission of the crime.
conspiracy
an agreement between two or more persons to commit a crime.
actus reus of conspiracy
the agreement to commit a crime.
mens rea of conspiracy
(1) intent to agree, and (2) intent to commit the target offense.
Does the agreement in a conspiracy have to be written or explicit?
No the agreement can be oral and can be inferred from conduct.
In addition to agreement and intent for a conspiracy, many states also require a ______.
overt act– a step is taken toward commission of the crime. Ex. if the conspiracy is to rob a bank, an overt act could be going online to find the nearest one to rob. (CA has the overt act requirement.)
Why punish conspiracy
Group criminal activity is thought to be particularly dangerous.
Does conspiracy merge into the target offense?
No, a person can be convicted of both.
Can a person withdraw from a conspiracy?
Yes, by affirmatively rejecting the conspiracy and communicating that rejection to the other members of the conspiracy known to the person.
When conspirators commit more than one offense, how many conspiracies are there?
It is determined by the number of agreements that were made.
If a would-be conspirator “agrees” with an undercover policy officer to commit a crime, is there a conspiracy?
No, there must be the actual intent to commit the crime by at least two people.
When does a conspiracy end?
Often when the conspirators are arrested, or when the crime is complete and the successful ex-conspirators go their separate ways.
Two types of complex conspiracies
chain, and hub and spokes
rim of a hub and spokes conspiracy
There is a rim if the spokes are mutually dependant on the continuing success of the hub.
Pinkerton liability
says that members of a conspiracy are liable for crimes committed by fellow conspirators if that act is done to further the conspiracy and that act is a natural and probably consequence of the common plan or design of the conspiracy.
Wharton’s Rule
An exception to the general rule that there is no merger of a conspriacy into the targeted offense; says that the conspiracy merges if the crime necessarily requires the participation of two people for its commission. Ex. incest, bigamy.
When does Wharton’s Rule not apply?
if more than the minimum number of people required to commit the crime actually participate in the offense, or when the consequences of the crime impact more than the participants.
mens rea of attempt
intent to commit a target crime.
actus reus of attempt
a substantial step toward completion of the crime.
Why punish attempt?
Allows police to prevent crime by arresting individuals who have demonstrated their dangerousness before they complete their intended crime.
Is attempt a specific or general intent crime?
Specific intent (even if the target crime is a general intent crime).
complete attempt
defendant took every step she intended to take to commit the crime, but for some reason the crime was not committed.
incomplete attempt
steps remain to be taken before the crime can occur.
proximity approach
a method of analyzing incomplete attempts that asks “How close did the defendant get to completing the offense?” Courts consider the number of acts remaining before the crime could occur, the distance to be covered before the crime could occur, and how close in time the offender got to completing the crime.
equivocality test
method of analyzing incomplete attempts in which we pretend D’s conduct from the beginning was video recorded, and we are watching the video with the sound turned off. Focuses on D’s actual conduct.
MPC approach to incomplete attempts
instead of asking how close D got to committing the crime, asks how far did D go toward completing the crime.
Does attempt merge into the completed crime?
Yes, D cannot be convicted of both, but if D is acquitted of the target crime, D can still be convicted of attempt of that crime.
Attempted murder
Requires intent to kill (malice cannot be implied). Also is not divided into degrees.
kill zone theory of attempted murder
Usually someone who intends to kill only one person and attempts to do so unsuccessfully is guilty only of attempted murder of that person, but he can also be guilty of attempted murder of other in the “kill zone,” which depends on the nature and scope of the attack. Ex. this would apply if D put a bomb on an airplane, intending only to kill one person.
impossibility defense
Says it is not a crime to attempt to do that which it is legally impossible to do. Ex. shooting a stuffed deer is not attempted poaching. Today, most states reject this defense, including CA.
