Inchoate Offenses Flashcards
What are the three inchoate offenses?
Solicitation, Attempt, Conspiracy
A conspiracy requires:
(1) an agreement between two or more;
(2) an intent to enter into the agreement; and
(3) an intent by at least two persons to achieve the objective of the agreement.
Modern Unilateral Approach to the two-party requirement for conspiracy
MPC’s “unilateral” approach requires only that one party have genuine criminal intent.
Defendant can be convicted of conspiracy if they conspire with one person only and that person is a police officer working undercover.
traditional bilateral approach to the two-party requirement for conspiracy
Requires two guilty minds. If one person in a two party agreement is only pretending to agree, the other party cannot be convicted of conspiracy.
What is the Wharton Rule?
Where two or more people are necessary for the commission of the substantive offense, there is no crime of conspiracy unless more parties participate in the agreement than are necessary for the crime.
Mental State of Conspiracy
Parties must have: (1) the intent to agree and (2) the intent to achieve the objective of the conspiracy.
Overt Act
At common law, conspiracy is finished when the agreement with the requisite intent is reached. The majority rule, followed by most states, is that an act in furtherance of the conspiracy must be performed.
If you are operating under the majority rule that requires an agreement plus an overt act, any little act can count even just mere preparation.
When does a conspiracy usually terminate?
Upon completion of the wrongful objective.
A conspirator may be held liable for crimes committed by other conspirators if the crimes:
(1) were committed in furtherance of the objectives of the conspiracy and
(2) were foreseeable.
Is factual impossibility a defense to conspiracy?
No.
Is withdrawal from a conspiracy a defense?
Generally no. Withdrawal MAY be a defense to crimes in furtherance of the conspiracy, including the substantive target crime of the conspiracy.
To withdraw effectively, a conspirator must perform an affirmative act that notifies all members of the conspiracy of their withdrawal.
Is there merger in the punishment for conspiracy?
No, conspiracy and the completed crime are distinct offenses and a defendant may be convicted of and punished for both.
Solicitation Elements
Consists of asking, inciting, counseling, advising, urging or commanding another to commit a crime, with the intent that the person solicited commit the crime. It is not necessary that the person solicited agree to commit the crime.
Solicitation Defenses
Most jurisdictions = not a defense that the solicitor renounces or withdraws the solicitation.
MPC recognizes renunciation as a defense if the defendant prevents the commission of the crime, such as by persuading the person solicited not to commit the crime.
Solicitation Merger
The solicitor cannot be punished for both the solicitation and these other offenses.
